


Blue In The Soul, Blue In The Face

by Pey119



Series: Blue [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Abuse, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - No Demigods (Percy Jackson), Child Abuse, Complete, Drug Addiction, Drug Use, Established Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, F/M, M/M, Nico Feels, Poor Nico, Self-Harm, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2019-06-23
Packaged: 2020-05-15 03:45:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 23,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19287448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pey119/pseuds/Pey119
Summary: Will moves across the country with his parents and their failing marriage. A new school with new dangers. All he wants is to become a doctor, but his secret won't go down quietly. Will Nico di Angelo bring it out full force?





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I've never done drugs before, anything to do with it in this story has been looked up on google so may not be realistic~

That high school year, Will would do the all-time weirdest thing he had ever done, and that was saying something. Somehow, it surpassed all his childhood cringe-worthy memories and all the times he made mistakes. But this━going to a preppy school in the middle of the city━seemed to be the weirdest.

"It's a good school," his mother insisted, looking over his shoulder as he looked the institution up. "They're known for their programs and their academics. You'll love it."

"Have you checked the area around it?" Will questioned. "I looked up the city and a PDF of a 'gang territory map' came up."

"Will," she sighed and sunk into the chair beside him. "It's a good school that happens to be in a bad area. Don't you want to be a doctor?"

"Well, yes-"

"And we have to move. Don't you want your father to keep his job?"

Will sighed. "Yes, but-"

"And it's right next to the hospital you'll be interning at." his mother explained. "They're supposed to be really busy so you'll get a lot of work in."

"I wonder why they're so busy." Will replied sarcastically. "I bet they get a lot of gunshots, too."

"You're going." his mother stated, standing up. "Now, finish packing. We're leaving tomorrow."

"What state is this in again?" Will called out to his mother's retreating form.

"Ohio," she replied.

Will frowned. "Where's that?"

She shook her head in exasperation before leaving his room, leaving him alone in the piles of boxes and medical books. Why did his dad have to get this stupid job in the first place? He was happy where he was in LA, with his friends and his schooling. He had his own car and his license and seemed to have a good life.

But he had one secret, one that he'd take with him to Ohio.


	2. Chapter 1

Will leaned his head on the cold window and looked out at the cars driving by, the sunrise peeking over the horizon. They had spent the weekend moving into the large house in the suburbs, the hours passing quickly until Monday morning hit. His mother insisted on driving him to school his first day, which Will happily accepted. He didn't know whether he could trust his car in the parking lot or not.

"I'm sure you'll make friends." his mother piped up as her favorite radio station went to commercials. She'd sit in the car all morning with her coffee and her phone games and listen to it while his father went to work. It was one of her only joys, her happiness having disappeared long before Will was born. His father never made her happy. "You always did so easily. Remember in third grade? All the girls insisted on being your girlfriend."

"Okay, okay." Will rolled his eyes. "You don't need to bring that up."

"I'm just saying that you'll be fine. I'm trying to calm your nerves, Will." she kept her eyes on the road, her blue irises the mirror of his. "Are you? Nervous, I mean."

Will shrugged. "A little, but it'll be fine. Moving states will be weird. English is different all over."

She laughed softly, something so rare Will often forgot it existed. "I'm sure your language will be fine, William."

Will fished his schedule out of his bag and read his locker number again, having already memorized the combination. "All the lockers have locks on them. It's mandatory."

"Lots of schools do that," she replied. "Just for safety precautions." The radio talk show came back on, making her eyes light up and her hand fly to the stereo to turn it back up. "Shush, now. They're talking about all the shit going on in the government."

Will knew not to fight her, his eyes training back on his schedule. American History, Algebra 2, AP Anatomy, American Lit, physics, honors chemistry, and Spanish 3. He wasn't looking forward to anything but Anatomy, which would help him further in his medical career. But Spanish? Seriously? He wasn't one to enjoy learning another language, but it was mandatory for the diploma he was going for.

His mother pulled into the school parking lot, her hand moving to grab Will's. "Stay safe, okay? Stay safe for me."

"I promise I will." he kissed her cheek before opening the door. "I've got to go. I'll see you after school, okay?"

She gave him a small smile, her mind no doubt filling with all the horrors that she heard about over the radio. The shootings, the stabbings, the bombings. She was worried her son wasn't going to come back home to her.

"Bye, love you." Will grabbed his bookbag and jumped out of the car, leaning in to talk to her. "My phone's always on. Text me if you get worried." With that he closed the door and headed for the tall building, his heart pumping and his new shoes squeaking against the wet pavement. Kids streamed through the doors all around him, just the type he would expect around these parts. None looked to be the private school type.

He headed up to the third floor, his hands gripping onto his schedule and his eyes darting around. Kids sat by their lockers and did homework, others slept, and others talked with their phones out. By the time he got to his locker, he felt like he was going to have a panic attack. His mother never knew, but he was terrible at making friends. He was terrible at being liked at all. Who would like a blond med student that was too smart for his own good?

You were allowed to bring your bookbag to school and carry it out but weren't allowed to have bags between classes. That meant he was in for a day of lugging books up and down the staircases.

A teenage boy around his age came up to the locker beside him and popped it open, completely disregarding the lock built into it. He turned to look at Will, his green eyes bright and cheerful. "Hey, are you new?"

Will simply nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

"I'm Percy Jackson," Percy smiled at him, seeming nice enough up front. "I guess I'll warn you now. My locker tends to explode my books out across the hall. Just ignore it. Everyone else does."

"Um..." Will looked around for anyone to help him out of the situation. "Okay...?"

"Do you have your schedule yet?" Percy questioned, looking into Will's organized locker. "Damn, I only know one other person that can keep it that clean."

Will pulled his crumbled schedule out of his pocket and held it out to Percy. "Do...do you know how any of the classes are?"

Percy took it and looked it over, taking a moment longer than necessary. "AP and honors classes? You really think I've taken those? You're insane." Percy tossed the paper back to Will. "But I have taken chemistry. Horrible subject."

"Right," Will got what he needed for his first class. "What about the teachers?"

"Chem teacher is okay," Percy admitted. "Algebra teacher is strict. Don't ever piss off Señora. Your Spanish career will be hell."

Will nodded. "Okay, thanks." He closed his locker and looked at Percy again, relaxing when he saw no judgment in those eyes. "Percy?"

"Yeah?" Percy had been busy searching his locker, throwing the papers and books aside.

"Thanks for helping me. Being the new kid is harder than I expected." Will scratched the back of his neck. "We just moved here from California..."

"I get it. I'm not from around here, either." Percy replied truthfully. "I moved here during sixth grade when my parents got a divorce. Don't worry, everyone knows everyone. We don't mess with each other here."

Percy closed his locker, the papers sticking through the cracks. "I've got to go, now. Find me at lunch if you have no one to sit with. Just be nice and respect those you don't know. You'll be fine, don't worry."

Percy headed off quickly, meeting up with a blond girl down the hall. Will watched silently as the two made their way to their class, wondering how he had survived his first conversation with a stranger and how it went so well. But Percy's words kept ringing in his head. "We don't mess with each other here." Was that a reassurance or a warning?


	3. Chapter 2

Will's first class seemed to be the most boring and time wasting. American History. All they did was take notes as half the class slept. The teacher was a younger woman with a last name impossible to pronounce. They called her Ms. H. The rumor mill said that she got divorced after cheating on her husband, but Will tried not to let that cloud his mind. She seemed pretty nice.

Nobody said hi to Will, nobody looked his way. He sat in the corner and observed his new classmates. Girls flirted and drank their coffees. Boys ate breakfast they never finished or slept. Some walked in late and handed the teacher a white slip and sat in their seats. Nobody noticed Will was even there.

A boy ran in some thirty minutes late, immediately sparking Will's attention. He had dark hair that fell in his face and his uniform hung off his skinny frame. He was basically skin and bones from what Will could see, far from healthy. The gray fleece covered his hands and swallowed him whole. He only carried an Ipad and a note, the latter given to the teacher before he made his way to the back of the room. He sat by Will without noticing the other was there, curled up in his seat, and leaned his head on his knees.

"Isn't it a little early in the morning for that, di Angelo?" one of the boys turned to face the newcomer. "Couldn't wait until lunch? Damn."

"I haven't done anything today." di Angelo hissed, lifting his head to glare at the boy. "I'm actually just tired, not high, so get back to your work."

Will's eyes widened. He leaned over to whisper to di Angelo, trying not to sound too sheltered from all of this. "He thought you were high? As in...drugs?"

The boy looked into Will's eyes before laughing quietly. "Oh god, you're serious. Where did you grow up?"

"Los Angeles." Will replied. "Why?"

"Your parents did a hell of a job raising you if you just gave me that reaction." he scratched at the collar of his polo shirt before looking back to Will. "What's your name?"

"Will. William Solace." Will stuck his hand out but it was never shaken. He awkwardly let it drop after a minute, trying not to be too put off. "What's your name? He said di Angelo?"

"That's my last name. The first is Nico." Nico swept some hair out of his eyes, his hand shaking slightly. "If I was you I'd be careful here."

"What does that mean?" Will flicked the zipper of his pencil pouch back and forth, the cold metal relaxing his frayed nerves.

"That means don't go asking people if they're high." Nico's pale face flicked to life with an amused smile. "Most people won't appreciate that."

"Oh," Will let out a breath of relief, a nervous laughter escaping his lips. "I thought you were going to say something worse."

Nico looked at him in silence before shaking his head. "You're so weird." His voice was soft and angelic, an Italian accent shifting it from normality.

"A good weird?" Will asked hopefully.

Nico's head dropped to his knees again. His voice clouded with pain momentarily, causing Will's ears to perk up and his heart to speed up. "Yeah, sure."

"Are you okay?" Will asked quietly. He noticed everything about Nico; the way he held his stomach, the way he was curled up, the way his hands shook and his veins stood out. How his uniform clothes were too big for him and how his bones stuck out. Will noticed everything.

"I'm fine." Nico snapped, his tone growing cold. "Pay attention to class, you asshole."

Will backed off immediately. He should have known better than to think he could've made a friend so easily. Especially a boy like Nico. Nico seemed to be in his own world all the time, with only himself in mind. At least Percy finished the conversation nicely. Nico decided to push Will out as soon as he had the chance.

But why?

As soon as the bell rang Nico was out of the classroom, nothing left but the faint scent of vinegar and coffee. Will headed for his next class with his head low and his mind racing. Percy and Nico. Nico was thought to be high. Sitting with Percy at lunch. Percy's locker. Nico getting mad. Percy as a possible friend. Nico...

Algebra went by slowly. More notes and no one to talk to. Anatomy and then lunch. The day felt like any other school day besides the weariness that had settled over Will. What was a healer like him doing in such an odd place? Nico had been right. His parents had raised him far from the daily lives of those around him.

The cafeteria was on the fourth floor. Will climbed the steps two at a time with his bag held close to him. He was starving, and the smell of fried food didn't help matters much. He walked into the room to find the tables full of students and a line where food was available to buy. He searched for Percy but couldn't find him anywhere, not even in line.

Will sighed in disappointment and looked for another place to sit. No seats were empty and he started to get some pretty weird looks for standing in the middle of the room. After a couple minutes, he gave up and walked back downstairs, trying not to let it get to him. He had eaten by himself plenty of times before. It'd be okay, he was fine.

But he had to admit, eating lunch alone in the bathroom was something he'd never get over.


	4. Chapter 3

"How did it go?" his mother asked as soon as he got in the car. She made sure he was buckled before driving off, the radio on like usual.

"It was good. The classes are really advanced." Will lied, sighing at the bag full of homework at his feet. "Lots of work."

She nodded. "Any friends?"

"Maybe. I met this guy named Percy." Will took his phone out to check the empty notifications. "I ate lunch with him and his friends."

His mother beamed. "That's so good! Is he in any of your classes?"

"No, but our lockers are right by each other." Will explained. "I met him this morning before classes."

"Anyone else?" she questioned, the talk show on the radio having ended at 10. Now she had her full attention on her son besides the occasional song that she loved to hear. "No other potential friends?"

"Maybe the others in his friend group." Will replied quietly. "But I don't know. It's only been one day, mom."

"Yeah, yeah, you're right." she swerved to avoid someone that strolled into the street without a care in the world. "I hate this city."

"You do?" Will perked up, his head turning to look at her.

Her cheeks reddened with embarrassment. "No. I didn't mean to say that."

"Yes, you did."

"It's a perfectly fine city that's in a perfectly fine state." she gave him a look. Drop it.

Will looked at her for a minute more before talking softer. "Look...you don't have to love it. No matter what dad says."

"Your father doesn't control my opinions. Now, hush up. My favorite song is on." she turned the radio up to a song they both know she hated after a lie they both know she stated.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night, laying in bed, Will couldn't help but think about all that had happened. Nico di Angelo, Percy Jackson, eating lunch in that bathroom, the afternoon and all its horrors...  
He pulled his laptop on his stomach and flicked the screen to life, letting it light up the darkened room. He and his old friend filled the background, the picture having been taken a year before...before Will lost him for good.

Will tore his eyes away from the picture and opened Chrome, letting out a shaky breath. Losing someone was never easy, but if there was a way for guilt to worm its way in there...  
It'd eat you alive.

Will's fingers hovered over the keyboard, his pinky fitting into the space where the 'L' key was still missing. He had dug it out with his finger after the first week of Lukas gone, knowing very well that being unable to type his name wouldn't help him in the least. But it kept him away from typing in his email and his facebook, so it was a success for a short period of time. But now, he was at a loss.

He typed "how do you tell if someone is high?" into the search bar and hoped Google would understand without the two missing letters in "tell". A number of websites popped up, along with some numbers to call if you needed help with an addiction (1-800-662-4357 in the US). Will clicked on the first one, sighing at all the symptoms that came up for each drug. It seemed to be never-ending, and then there were overdose and withdrawal symptoms. None sounded tempting.

An add filled up the screen suddenly, causing his eyes to widen and his hands to fumble around while trying to figure out how to turn the volume down. The letter keys rattled under his hands, his breath hitched in his throat, the once silent room was filled with a deep voice talking about the new deal on condoms. He shut the volume off quickly but was scared half to death. It was almost midnight. If his dad found him still awake...

Nothing outside his room stirred. After a couple minutes of silence to make sure that he, in fact, didn't wake anyone up, he exited out of chrome with no new news. Why'd he care about catching Nico high so much? Half his school probably did drugs and their parents probably let them. What would Will ever get about confronting Nico?

Besides saving his life.

Will stared mournfully at the background of his laptop, his curser covering Lukas' left eye. The other was dark like Nico's but held more life and laughter than Nico's ever could. His left arm was slung over Will's shoulders, his shirt outlining his biceps. He looked like any other teenage boy, happy, tan, smiling, tall, lean, alive.  
He had been more alive than anyone around him. The world was his oyster. He promised to cure cancer someday.

Will slammed the laptop shut and tossed it to the floor, his hands shaking and his eyes watering. He hadn't cried over Lukas in months, but some things never got old.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His mother entered his room the next morning with a cup of coffee in one hand and her phone in the other. "Rise and shine, sunshine. Your alarm should have gone off ten minutes ago."

Will kept the blankets over his head and let out a soft groan. "I don't feel good." Grief and guilt, the mental killers. A battle with them took too much out of you than you'd want to admit.

He heard his mother enter the room and set her coffee and phone down on his bedside table. "What do you feel like? Can I feel your forehead?"

Will pulled the blankets down and allowed her to see his reddened face and his puffy eyes. He had been crying all night and it was now severely noticeable.

"What is it? What's wrong?" she sat next to him and ran her fingers through his hair, her presence starting to calm him. "Will, what happened? You've been crying?"

"I...I miss him, mom. I really miss him." Will managed. He hadn't played the guilt card in awhile, but he couldn't bear to go back to school. Not today. Walking those hallways alone felt too similar to the week after he had lost Lukas. Eating in the bathroom was the exact same.

"You miss...oh..." she looked down at her son as if he had just lost his pet for the first time. "Baby...what got you thinking about him again? It's been so long..."

Will started to realize exactly what his brain and heart had been sensing. "This kid in my class...he looks like him. He really looks like him, mom. The only difference is his hair. This kid's is black."

"...What's this kid's name?"

"Nico di Angelo." Will rattled off. "Di Angelo...Not related to him, but still. I hate it, mom."

She brushed through his golden locks, her pale fingers tangling in the hair. She felt his ache, knew how it felt as if his very heart was being torn apart. She had lost her boyfriend when she was 17, having stupidly chosen Will's father. When her ex-boyfriend died... She was never the same. "How about you stay home today? We can watch some movies and eat junk food until we throw up."

"No school? No Nico?"

She nodded. "No school, no Nico. For today."

Will nodded a little, wiping his raw eyes. "What about the talk show? You're going to miss it. Isn't that musical guest going to be on today?"

She pursed her lips before kissing the top of his head. "My son is more important than some musical guest. Now, let's go raid your father's candy stash. He already left."

Will couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, okay. I love you, mom."

She pulled him closer. "Love you, too."


	5. Chapter 4

Will and his mother were watching a movie on the couch when his father came home from work, the front door slamming behind him and rattling on the hinges. Both of them froze momentarily before his mother got up to meet him, her hands clasped together and her face pale. "Allen, you're early-"

"His school called me." his father cut in, dropping his bag on the ground. The new carpet caught it without a sound, but a couple things rolled out. A box of condoms happened to be one of them. "You let him skip without even calling him in? What were you thinking?"

"I...I..." At a loss for words, she eyed the box of condoms with a sunken heart. "He didn't feel good...had a fever..."

"You still didn't call him in! They called me at work, thinking he was taken by someone!" Will flinched at the rising voices but couldn't do anything but watch, his eyes frozen on his mother's face. Allen stepped closer to her with his fist clenched and his eyes alight with anger, not even noticing his son in the room. "What is wrong with you lately! Apollo's been dead for years and you still can't get over that piece of shit!"

Her face turned angry, a red hue deepening her cheeks. "Allen. Take it back. He has nothing to do with this."

He shook his head. "You can't focus on _anything_ anymore. You hear he's dead and you're insane enough to stick in an institution! Because of you, they called me at work and I almost got fired!"

"You should have had your phone silenced!" tears now poured down her cheeks. "It's that simple, Allen. Just keep it silenced."

"Dad," Will finally spoke up, moving his mother back after seeing the rising of his father's fist. "I was distracting her, it wasn't her fault. I'm sorry. It won't happen again. I'm going to school tomorrow, anyways. I've missed a lot of work."

Allen's eyes fixated on his son, his fist falling to his side. "Why did you possibly think staying home was smart?"

Will wordlessly shrugged, keeping himself between his parents. It was the only way to stop their fights nowadays.

"Get up to your room and email your teachers, see if you can do any of the work tonight," Allen commanded, his anger starting to fade away. "You can't fall behind."

Will nodded, shot his mother a guilty glance, and climbed the stairs. He could hear them start to argue quietly after he had left the room, but they didn't yell again.

That was his only victory for a long while.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will entered the building the next day with his hood up and his head down. His hands were buried deep in his pockets and his bookbag dug into his back, bouncing every time he climbed another staircase. The third floor, like usual, was loud and boisterous. He ignored them all as he walked to his locker, trying to remain unseen and unnoticed.

He was busy organizing his books when Percy walked up next to him and opened his own locker, causing a landslide of papers and textbooks to fall onto the floor at their feet. Will couldn't help but wince when his toes got smashed, but Percy looked like it happened quite commonly.

"How tragic," Percy put his book bag away and took a drink from his water bottle before kneeling down to start to gather everything, Will having already been down there. He had most of the papers in a neat pile, frowning at all the failed tests stashed away.

"Thanks," Percy looked up at Will, his usual smile locked onto his features. "Where were you yesterday? Did you have someone else to sit with?"

Will looked up at Percy, confusion washing over his features. "What?"

"Lunch. You were going to sit with me." Percy repeated, frowning at an old test before crumbling it up. "I'll show that one to my mom at the end of the year."

"I looked for you all over the cafeteria," Will explained, his voice small. "I couldn't find you anywhere."

Percy let out a loud laugh, causing a couple people to look over. "You think we eat in the cafeteria? Well, that's why you couldn't find me. Meet me in the third-floor bathroom at lunchtime. I'll show you where we eat."

Will stared at him for a minute more before letting himself smile. "Should I be scared?"

"If you're afraid of heights." Percy stuffed everything back in his locker before slamming it shut. "I've got to go. I'll see you then."

He ran off to the nearest staircase, his blue hoodie still on despite the dress code. Will turned back to his own locker feeling a lot lighter, but frowned when he thought about having to go to first period. Seeing Nico wouldn't help his mental state in the least.

Will got to the classroom right before the bell rang, sitting beside Nico in the back. Nico had seemed to have been there for awhile, his gloved hands clasped around a coffee and his knees to his chest. He smelled the same as yesterday, an odd mixture of aromas that Will wasn't familiar with together. Nothing about his smell reminded him of Lukas, but everything else did.

"Nico?" Will asked quietly, keeping his eyes on Nico's. They were darker than any others he had seen, dull and lifeless with no happiness or energy. "Can I ask you a question?"

"If it's if I'm high, the answer is no," Nico replied lightly. "But I was at five this morning if that helps change the answer up a bit."

Will bit his lip, recognizing the sarcasm in Nico's tone almost too late. "I was actually going to ask you if you're related to someone I used to know. Lukas Evans? You look basically the same."

Nico shook his head, a soft smile gracing his thin lips. "Sorry, Will, I don't know him. Do we look that similar?"

"Almost identical." Will admitted. "But he had dyed his hair blue for so long that I got used to that look."

"Blue? Not my style, but I guess it depends on if he liked it and who he's around." Nico seemed in a better mood than yesterday but never seemed to be in a good mood. "Was it like mine before he dyed it?"

Will nodded. "Yep,"

They were quiet for a minute as the teacher passed out a packet before Nico looked to Will, his voice blunt but curious. "Do you have a picture of him?"

Will looked up in shock before nodding. "You want to see?"

Nico nodded. "I've never had a doppelganger before."

Will kept himself from asking what that was as he took his phone from his pocket and opened the same picture he had as his laptop's background. He held it out to Nico, trying not to let the teacher see. "His hair's dyed but it was the same color as yours."

Nico's eyes widened, his hands leaving his coffee to move to the phone. "Holy shit, you were right. Damn... I'm gonna see if we're related later. Where's his family?"

"California." Will replied numbly. "LA."

Nico nodded as he studied Lukas' face, his hand moving to his own as he felt at his upturned nose and high cheekbones. "Damn..."

"You...you see why I asked you?" Will managed, trying not to keep his mind focused on only Lukas.

"Definitely." Nico let the phone go and curled back up in his seat, shaking his head. "That's insane, Will."

Will nodded as he looked down at the worksheet, a smile tugging at his lips at his first successful conversation with Nico. He didn't like how he reminded him of Lukas, but he also seemed to be attached to Nico. If he could replace Lukas...

No. Will wouldn't let that happen. It would mean spilling his secret to the world. The last time he did, someone died.


	6. Chapter 5

Lunch came by quickly after first period was through. Will grabbed the pre-made lunch out of his locker before walking into the third-floor bathrooms, feeling his cheeks starting to redden when he realized that Percy Jackson could have just been setting him up again. Who would possibly hold meetings in a bathroom as dirty as the third floor's?

His question was answered when Percy walked in with a pizza box in one hand and a pop bottle in the other. "Hey, Will. Come on, I'm starving."

Will slowly went to him. "Where are we going exactly?"

"The fifth floor," Percy replied, leading him out of the bathroom. "Just don't go telling no adults, okay?"

"There's a fifth floor?" Will seemed as lost as ever. "Is that code for something?"

Percy turned to look at him before holding the pizza out. "Hold this."

Will took it and the pop before following Percy up to the fourth floor. "This is the fourth. There's no fifth."

"Will, Will, you're so impatient." Percy looked around before opening a door marked staff only. "Get in, hurry."

"But...I'm not part of the staff..."

"Get in, William."

Will ran into the door and heard Percy come in behind him, the door closing with a dull thud that went unnoticed by everyone else. Will was met with a dark staircase, his eyes as wide as saucers and his jaw dropped. "No way...there's...there's no fifth floor...there's no..."

"It's called a roof, Californiac." Percy took the pizza back and headed up the stairs. "Come on, we only get 20-minute lunches."

"Right..." Will followed slowly. "But is this allowed?"

"Did the sign not tell you? Of course, it's not." Percy opened the trap door, sunlight pouring onto their faces. "But we don't play by the rules here." He climbed onto the roof and walked off, leaving Will to follow hesitantly. Once he got up there, he saw Percy's friend group.

Teenage boys and girls sat in a circle on the pebbled roof, eating various foods and talking loudly. Most wore something over their uniforms, whether it be a coat or hoodie. One of the girls wore pajama pants under her skirt. When she saw Percy she sprang to her feet and held her arms out. "You got a pizza! God bless!"

Will took a step towards them, starting to smile at the fresh air and sunlight after being stuck in the building all morning. The others seemed to enjoy it also, which was probably one of the reasons they ate up there. It was nice, even if it was illegal.

"Who's the glowstick?" one of the boys asked, gesturing to Will. "Did you recruit another freshman? Because I swear, Percy, they don't last long."

"He's not a freshman." Percy sat by them and opened the pizza box. "He's new from California. My locker threw up on him this morning."

"What's your name?" the blonde girl that walked with Percy in the mornings spoke up.

"Will Solace," another voice answered for him, making him jump. Looking over, he noticed Nico for the first time sitting at the very edge of the roof with his back against the half wall. In one hand he held a lit lighter under an open piece of foil. In the other, he held a plastic straw. One end of it met up with the foil and the other met with his pale lips. Smoke bellowed its way into him while some escaped into the air. "He's the weirdest Californiac that ever existed."

"Ignore him, Will, he's high." the girl cast a disapproving glance towards Nico before looking back to Will. "Come sit."

Will couldn't take his eyes off of Nico, couldn't keep his mind from picturing Lukas there, smoking whatever drug Nico had. He would have screamed at Lukas, forced him to quit, make sure he never touched the stuff again. He was lucky that Lukas had never had that problem. But now, looking at Nico, he couldn't do any of those things. All he could do was watch.

"Will," Percy got up to wave in front of the teenager's face. "You're from LA. How have you never seen someone smoking heroin before?"

"His parents raised him to be a snob," Nico interjected. "He thinks it's a crime."

"It technically is," the girl muttered. "Come on, Will. Come sit. My name's Annabeth Chase. I'm Percy's girlfriend."

"Nice...nice to meet you." Will sat beside her after finally tearing his gaze away from Nico. "Is it okay that I'm up here with you guys?"

She gave him a small smile. "Course. Percy invited you, didn't he? So you need to know our names. That's Frank, Leo, Jason, Calypso, Piper, Reyna, Nico (I'm guessing you know him), and Grover. We're all juniors."

"Nice to meet you..." Will looked around at the easy-going faces, finding it hard to imagine them growing up in the world around this school. Gangs, shootings, stabbings, drugs. They seemed too nice to be involved in such things. But then again, their friend was smoking something right next to them and they didn't even bat an eye.

"So, you're a Californiac?" Leo asked, his eyes looking Will over.

"Why do you guys keep calling me that?" Will blurted out, causing all of them to burst out in laughter. "I'm so confused..."

"Californiac, maniac, same difference," Piper explained, a smile tugging at her fine lips. "It's just something we've always called Californians."

"You think they're all maniacs?"

"The only news we hear about California is who got high and who beat who and the stupid ways people have died," Percy explained. "We don't pay attention to the important news, as you can see."

Will let out a soft chuckle. "I see, trust me."

He relaxed into the friend group for the rest of lunch, finding himself laughing until his stomach ached and relaxed enough to sleep. The sunlight helped warm his bones and the air felt nice in his lungs. He kept stealing glances towards Nico, however, worried about the young boy. So he did get high, after all. He got high on a drug that could end his life too soon.


	7. Chapter 6

The rest of the week went by relatively soon. Will went to his classes, ate lunch on the roof, went to more classes, and went home to do homework until he fell asleep. He liked the new friend group, to say the least. Percy was nice and showed him the ropes, Annabeth was accepting, and the others were always including him in everything that went on. Even Nico now greeted him every morning in American History.

Friday was quick to come with a weekend of rest waiting for him. All he needed was to get through one more day, survive until the afternoon. He hadn't had more than six hours of sleep for a night in weeks and was craving the Friday night naps he always took. The last time he hung out with someone for a Friday night, Lukas was in his life.

"Will!" Percy ran up to their lockers with a water bottle in one hand and a drawstring bag in the other. "It's Friday!"

Will turned to face the only one in the school that he was confident enough to call a friend. "Yeah...? And...?"

"We're swimming after school." Percy invited. "Meet me in the bathrooms like usual."

"The school doesn't have a swimming pool." Will replied lightly.

"Oh, yes it does." Percy looked like he was trying to hold back laughter. "It's on the sixth floor."

Wil groaned and leaned his head against his closed locker. "There is no sixth floor."

"That's what you said about the fifth but we proved you wrong." Percy opened his bag, revealing a swimsuit and goggles. "See? I've got my stuff."

"There is no sixth floor." Will repeated, trying to think of anything that Percy would call the sixth floor. There wasn't another roof, wasn't another building.

"Just meet me in the bathroom after school." Percy insisted, stuffing his things into his locker. "Please?"

"I hope you don't think the bathrooms are a suitable place for swimming...that's so unsanitary..."

"William Solace, you're swimming with us. That's the final decision." Percy slammed his locker shut, a grin spreading across his face when nothing fell out. "See? Today's a good day. It's Friday."

"Friday...right..." Will watched Percy go, unable to tell him that he didn't want to go. He didn't want to necessarily blow Percy off...but still...he thought of ways to get out of this swimming trip.

He walked in homeroom to find Nico curled up in his seat as usual with his gloved hands around his coffee, the cutoffs revealing his pale fingers and his bleeding nails. He'd been biting them again.

"Hey," Will set his books on his own desk before dropping into the seat. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did." Nico reached to the floor by his bag (*coughs* the one he wasn't allowed to have *coughs*) and handed Will the extra coffee. "Friday coffee, learn to love it. Everyone gets one."

Will stopped short for a minute before smiling. "Thanks..."

Nico nodded. "Now, what's your question?"

"Percy invited me to go swimming after school..." Will's face filled with concern and confusion. "He said the pool's on the sixth floor...? He's gotta be lying, right?"

Nico looked at him for a minute before covering his mouth with one hand, coughing while trying to suppress a laugh. "U-Um..."

"Wait...are you smiling?" Will tried to pull Nico's hand down. "Let me see."

"Why?" Nico pulled away quickly.

"I got you to almost laugh, it's a miracle. And I want to see this smile that corresponds with the laugh. It'll be cute." Will replied, not realizing what he said. "Come onnnn,"

Nico's cheeks lit up as cherry as Piper's lipstick. "W-what?"

"What?"

Nico let his hand drop, smiling wider that Will had ever seen him. His teeth shone through behind pale lips and his slight dimples were seen. Damn...he looked so much like...

"See? I told you it's cute, Lu-..." Will covered his mouth quickly as his eyes widened and his heart dropped. "Oh god, sorry, I didn't mean that."

Nico scowled heavily, his eyes narrowing in anger. "I'm not Lukas, William."

"I know-"

"And if that's the only reason you called me cute, fuck you." Nico stood up quickly and left the room, completely ignoring the teacher's questions. Will stared after him with his heart heavy, knowing he had finally screwed up. Big time.

Some friendships just weren't meant to be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will sat with his back against the stall door and his hand holding the broken lock closed. He hated this, hated the crying. It was like his feelings sparked and went on overtime as soon as he read what Nico had put on that coffee cup.

" _William Solace, welcome to our little gang of coffee-loving, church-going, rule-hating, rebellious, government haters. Glad to see you'll fit in just fine. Get used to coffees on Friday's and messages on them. What can I say, I'm a romantic_."

Nico's handwriting was neat and in cursive, the black sharpie smelling nostalgic in Will's sense. He had put care into this, had welcomed Will in. And now Will had gone and blown it.

"I'm an idiot." Will muttered, wiping his eyes in misery. "I'm such an idiot."

The door to the bathroom opened and Percy's voice met his ears. "Will? Are you in here? You couldn't have lost your way to the roof already, right?"

Will moved a hand over his mouth and closed his eyes, praying that Percy wouldn't hear him. He couldn't go up there for lunch, not when Nico would be there. He wasn't going to make the kid uncomfortable in the only place he ate lunch. He couldn't do anything else to Nico di Angelo.

"Nico went home for the day, said you made him pissed off," Percy explained. "What happened?"

Will took a deep breath, wiped at his eyes, and rose shakily to his feet.

"He said something about you calling him cute? Cause I didn't know you were-"

"I'm not gay!" Will blurted out, silently cursing himself for doing so. He opened the stall door and stepped out, his face red and his clothes a mess. "I'm sorry...I...I called him by my old friend's name and he freaked out..."

"The old friend that looks like him?" Percy asked quietly, his smiling having dropped.

Will frowned. "Um...he told you about that?"

"Let's just say, there's a lot to Nico you don't know about. I doubt thinking he was Blue made him feel good." Percy shrugged.

Will whipped his head around to face Percy, his expression obviously worrying the older boy. "What did I say?"

"What did you call him?" Will asked, his heart starting to beat out of his chest. "What did you call him?!"

Percy took a step back. "Blue. That was his middle name. Didn't he like to be called that?"

"I never told Nico that," Will clenched his fists. "How did you know that?"

"You never told...oh..." Percy scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry, I thought whatever Nico knew, you knew."

"He told you that?"

Percy nodded. "I don't know how he knew...I'm sorry, I wish I did. Do you want me to ask him?"

Will shook his head. "I need to talk to him. Do you have his phone number or address?"

Percy got his phone out and handed it to Will. "Copy his number down..."

Will pulled Nico's contact up and copied the number into his phone, his blood starting to boil. Nico did what he said he would. He looked Lukas up to see if they were related. Why the hell hadn't he told Will what he found?

Will texted Nico " _Look, I'm sorry about this morning, but seriously? You know more about him than I told you and you're just deciding to keep it all a big secret?_ "

" _Excuse me_?" Nico texted back only seconds later. " _Who is this_?"

" _Will. You told Percy about Lukas and that his middle name was Blue. How did you know that?"_

Nico didn't respond, causing Will's anger to boil to the surface. " _How did you know, Nico_?"

" _I think you should come over. We need to talk_." Nico then sent him his address. " _Hurry it up, now. Nobody's home."_


	8. Chapter 7

Will drove to Nico's house with anger clouding his fear. Nico lived close to the school, deep in the neighborhoods Will had never dared venture into before. The houses were large but falling apart, none looking taken care of or relatively new. A dog walked around with no chain, a couple men sat on their porch and eyed Will as he drove by. A gun sat in the one's lap but he didn't draw it.

Will pulled up to one of the largest and most rundown houses. He parked in the driveway, locked his car, and walked up to the porch with shaky legs and one hand around his bracelet. It was a simple blue thread but had used to be Lukas' favorite. A part was still stained with blood.

Nico opened the door soon after Will knocked, his hair a mess and his uniform shirt untucked. His tie hung undone around his neck, the red material laying on the white shirt peacefully. He looked like he had just woken up, despite the fact that he had been texting Will not too long before.

"Come in," he stepped back to let Will in before closing the door behind him, locking it up. "Let's go sit down and talk. We...we need to talk."

"About how you stalked my old friend? Yeah, we do." Will looked at him. "Where are we talking?"

"I'm not the only one in the wrong here," Nico argued. "You called me Lukas!"

"I'm sorry! It was one mistake!" Will put his head in his hands. "God, I feel like my parents."

"Fighting about an old boy?" Nico scoffed.

"Actually, yeah." Will replied bitterly. "Just...take me somewhere we can sit down. We need to actually talk and not yell if we're going to get anywhere."

Nico pulled him upstairs, his footsteps heavy and his grip on Will's arm tight. They soon entered a bedroom about as dark as Nico's eyes, with a mattress on the floor and clothes strewn around. There was no furniture.

Nico sat on the mattress before tapping next to him for Will to do the same. "I don't know how to start."

Will sat across from him. "From the beginning. Everything you know. Because I know you looked him up, Nico, and I know you figured something out. You told Percy that he liked to be called Blue, and I never told you that. So tell me everything you know."

Nico sighed, putting his head in his hands. "Fine. Here it goes."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Maria di Angelo, a respectable woman, married too young to a man much older than herself. She looks down at the babies in her arms, knowing very well that she'll barely be able to even take care of one by herself. She'd never survive two._

_The voices outside the room get to her, make her hold the baby boys close to her chest in fear. When Hades came in, she'd have to make a decision. He needed to know which one they were giving away._

_Maria pulled the old camera closer before taking a picture of her two newborns, tears pouring from her eyes as she looked down at the identical faces. She would lose one of her babies that day. She hadn't even named them, but here she was, deciding which one her husband would deliver to the family in need._

_She kept the healthier one, knowing very well that the little one would need more love and care. Care Hades wouldn't allow her to give. So, kissing the baby's forehead and looking at him one more time, she handed him over to her waiting husband._

_She never saw him again._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will and Nico walked into the school building as the last bell of the day rang, side by side against the onslaught of kids running to get home. They waited in the third-floor bathrooms for Percy, Nico wrapped in a hoodie and Will still in his uniform. Neither glared at each other or held hard feelings, but instead sat together in peace.

"You ready, Will?" Percy asked as he walked into the bathroom. He looked at Nico in surprise before smiling. "So, you two made up?"

"You can say that," Will admitted. "So, where is this sixth-floor swimming pool?"

"Not on the sixth floor." Percy laughed. "Come on, it's at Leo's. You coming?"

Will looked to Nico as they walked out. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Nico glanced over at him, his thin smile gracing his lips. "That wouldn't have been fun, now would it?"

Damn, did Will finally see what he had been missing.

"We're taking my car," Percy looked back at them as they exited the school. "Come on, walk faster, lovebirds."

"Saying me and Will are lovebirds is like saying that you and Jason drank that bottle of wine." Nico retorted, confusing Will to no end but making sense to Percy. The older boy simply shrugged and got in his front seat, greeting Annabeth who had been waiting in the passenger's seat. Will and Nico hopped in the back, barely having time to close their doors before Percy sped off.

"What did you mean?" Will asked. "Something about them drinking a wine bottle?"

"Inside joke," Nico admitted. "Don't worry about it."

Will nodded, assuming that Nico had told Percy off for calling them lovers. Never did he think that Nico would have done the opposite.

"Do you have a bathing suit, Will?" Annabeth asked, looking back at them. "If not, I'm sure Leo has one you can borrow."

"I'm borrowing Nico's, but thanks." Will smiled. "He said he never swims, anyway, and I believe him."

"You're right about that." Annabeth turned back around. "I'm surprised he even brought his."

"I only did so he could use it," Nico grumbled. "I've never used it before and it's been a waste of money."

"I'll use it, don't worry. I love swimming." Will's eyes lit up. "Surfing was my all time favorite, but swimming is still up there."

"Oh, right, you're a Californiac," Nico replied dryly. "I almost forgot."

Will elbowed him lightly before looking out the window. "Where does Leo even live?"

"Suburb not too far," Annabeth replied. "A pretty nice neighborhood. His dad owns a mechanic shop, so they get their money."

Will nodded, watching the streets go by. Nico, Lukas, Nico, Lukas...

At least it wasn't only Lukas filling his mind anymore.


	9. Chapter 8

_Will looked down at his phone, smiling when he saw Lukas' message come in. 'Meet me at the beach, no questions'_

_It was almost one in the morning but Will did as he was told, getting his swimsuit on and a shirt before sneaking out of the house. It was summer break, the time to hang out beyond the limits of school. He never thought of telling his parents where he was going, and they never noticed that he was gone._

_Will got to the beach in record time and snuck in quietly, nobody there to stop him. He found Lukas sitting in the sand under the moonlight, his blue hair wild and his small frame naked except for the swim trunks that almost fell off him. He was tiny, almost too tiny, and had doctors appointments regularly. He never told Will what they were for._

_"Lukas!" Will ran up to him and sat beside him. "What's this about?"_

_"I got your birthday gift." Lukas smiled at Will, his eyes alive and shinning like the stars above them. "You haven't even noticed it yet, have you? Jeez, it's not that dark."_

_Will refused to admit that he had been staring at Lukas. "Oh, right, yeah. Where is it?" He looked around, freezing when his eyes landed on the two surfboards that laid behind Lukas in the sand. "Are...are those..."_

_"The blue one's mine, the yellow one is yours." Lukas grabbed his own and got to his feet. "Come on, the waves are perfect! There's a reason we're doing this in the middle of the night."_

_He ran into the water, not even the ocean able to contain his spirit. Will watched for a moment before following, trying to decide how exactly he could let this boy know that he loved him. He loved a spirit too wild to tame._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will looked at himself in the mirror, Nico's black swimsuit clinging to his frame. He knew Nico was skinny, but not this skinny. He stared at his tan skin, stared at his abs, stared at everything that Nico could hate about him. He looked like any other "Californiac" and would stick like that in the minds of his new friends. He didn't want to only be that.

"Will, I need to go to the bathroom!" Percy frantically knocked on the door. "How long does it take Californiacs to change?!"

"I'm coming!" Will balled his old clothes up, stuffed them in the bag that had had Nico's swimsuit in it, and exited the bathroom. He walked by Percy quickly and to where Nico waited, stuffing the bag in his hands. "There."

Nico took the bag. "What's wrong with you?"

"The swimsuit is a little too tight, but it's fine." Will admitted. "I feel weird."

Nico looked him over before rolling his eyes. "It looks fine, William. Now get to the pool."

"Are you coming?"

"I hate water. I usually go and use Leo's Netflix subscription." Nico held a TV remote up. "His bedroom has a mini fridge and a large TV. That's where I'll be for the next couple hours."

With that Nico stalked upstairs, leaving Will to find the indoor pool by himself. He finally came down to the basement to find the others swimming, drinks laid out and pizza boxes stacked against the wall. It seemed like they really did do this every Friday.

And Will could get used to that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Nico curled up in the corner, about five years old. He wore ratty clothes and was still in a diaper, nobody ever having potty trained him. His mother was dead, his sister was dead, everyone was dead._

_Except for his father._

_"Nico!" the man burst into the room, his face red and filled with anger. He held the photo up, shaking with undeniable rage. It was the worst Nico had ever seen him. "What is this?! Where did you get this?!"_

_"M-M-Momma's room..." Nico whimpered, trying to move further back but unable to. "Is...is that...is that my brother?"_

_"You don't have a brother! He's long gone!" Hades ripped the picture up, sending the pieces of paper fluttering to the floor. "Your mother never should have taken that."_

_Nico watched the pictures become nothing more than scraps of paper, his heart sinking, and his very soul filling with sadness. That picture had been his only hope. Having a brother, even if he was long gone, was still some hope for a new family. He had a family out there that wasn't Hades._

_"Is there any more pictures?" Hades roared, stalking over to his small son. "Give them to me!"_

_"I don't have any more!" Nico sobbed. "You broke it! You broke it!"_

_The palm of Hades' hand slammed across Nico's face, creating a noise loud enough to be heard by the neighbors. "Shut up, you little shit! I know she had more pictures!"_

_"No!" Nico argued again. "No! You broke it!"_

_His cheek was already red and blistered but Hades struck it again, this time harder. "Don't you dare ever try to find that boy! Got it?"_

_Nico nodded, drowning in his own tears. "Okay..."_

_"You promise me?" Hades grabbed the small boy's chin and pulled it up so their eyes met. "Promise? Remember, you can't break a promise."_

_"I...I...I promise..." Nico mumbled. "I promise..."_

_Hades let him go roughly before stalking out of the room, forgetting to take the ripped up pieces with him._


	10. Chapter 9

Will wrapped the towel around his shoulders, trying not to shiver too much as he made his way up to Leo's room. The others sat around and ate pizza, but Will needed to go home soon. His mom was probably getting worried.

He walked in to find Nico laying on the large bed, drinking from a wine bottle that was already half gone. His eyes were red and his hands shook slightly, the items around him that Will knew by now meant Nico was high.

And drunk.

"Nico, I need my bag to change." Will walked into the room and closed the door behind him. "Are you okay?"

Nico moved the bottle away from his mouth long enough to talk. "I'm sad today."

Will felt his smile drop. "Are you okay? Is it...is it from what we talked about?"

Nico nodded glumly. "I...I wish I had a family, you know?"

Will walked over and sat on the bed beside Nico, knowing that he would never be this open to Will if he was sober. But Will was there and Nico was talking, and he'd comfort him no matter what.

"Everyone does," Nico continued, his hands moving as he talked, the wine in the bottle swishing along. "Percy has his mom. His parents got a divorce and him and his mom moved here to get away, but he still has his mom. Annabeth has her father and stepmom. Leo's mom died but he has his dad. You...you have your mom. Everyone has someone that loves them, even if it's just one person. I have no one."

"Nico...can I hug you?" Will asked quietly, not knowing how to comfort the younger boy but to do as such. Nico grunted in acceptance and Will laid beside Nico, pulling him into a tight hug.

"Ow," Nico didn't pull away but buried his head deep in Will. "Don't call me Lukas."

"I won't," Will promised.

"Or Blue," Nico started to play with the strings on Will's swimsuit absentmindedly. "Don't call me those names."

"I won't." Will watched his hands closely. "Nico, what are you doing?"

"Dunno," Nico continued. "Just don't call me that."

"I won't, I promise." Will started to blush. "Nico, stop that."

"Why?" Nico smirked at him, the alcohol in his veins and the drugs in his brain. "What if I don't?"

"Nico..." Will moved a hand to Nico's hair. "You should stop..."

Nico looked up at him, the darkness of his eyes catching him off guard. He and Lukas may be similar, but nobody's soul matched Nico's. "Will?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"Can I kiss you?" Nico suddenly looked ten times more attractive even though he smelled like the killers he took in. "Please?"

"You're drunk..." Will whispered. "You aren't thinking clearly. Do you always get drunk when you go to Leo's house?"

"No, but talking about everything made me sad," Nico admitted. "About...about Lukas and everything."

"I'm sorry, but we can't kiss just because you're drunk. That...that feels wrong." Will stammered. "You know that, Nico. And you're going to hate yourself for this in the morning."

"William," Nico wrapped an arm around him. "I'm drunk but I know what I'm doing. Trust me."

Will looked down at him, running his hands through Nico's tangled hair. "Fine...but only if you really want to."

"Of course I do, you idiot." Nico moved up and kissed Will softly. His lips were still wet from the pool and his hair dripped onto Nico's face, moving like teardrops until they fell off his chin. They could hear the others downstairs, hear their laughter and fun, but all they could focus on was each other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Will let the surfboard fall to the sand and laid on it, staring up at the stars. "Lukas...that was awesome! Best birthday gift ever!"_

_Lukas laid beside him, his blue hair spreading across the sand. "You like the board that much?"_

_Will nodded. "Course. It's awesome, Lukas. Thank you."_

_Lukas smiled at him. "No problem. Now, are we climbing that cliff or no?"_

_"In the dark?" Will sat up to face him. "Lukas, it's too dangerous."_

_Lukas also sat up, rolling his eyes. "Nothing is too dangerous. Dangerous is my middle name."_

_"No, it's not, Blue is." Will shot back. "You can either be blue or dangerous."_

_Lukas sighed heavily. "Come onnnnn. It'll be fun."_

_Will shook his head and laid back down in the sand. "I...I actually wanted to talk to you. About something important."_

_Lukas looked down at him in confusion, his chest still moving harshly from the exercise they had gone through. "What is it?"_

_"I'm..." Will looked down, his face beet red. "I'm..."_

_"You're...?" Lukas started to build a sandcastle between them. "What are you, then?"_

_Will watched Lukas make it silently for a couple minutes before speaking again, his voice shattering the silence. "Gay,"_

_Lukas' hand stopped momentarily and his humming died off. He looked down at his creation for a minute before looking to Will, his blue contacts shinning in the moonlight. "So?"_

_Will let out a shaky breath before jumping through the sandcastle and tackling Lukas with a hug. Lukas hugged back, a laugh escaping his lips. "What's this for?"_

_Will buried his head in Lukas' shoulder. "I thought you were going to hate me."_

_"And why would I hate you?" Lukas asked. "You're my best friend."_

_"Because of your family. They're homophobic asses." Will mumbled into Lukas' shoulder. "You told me yourself."_

_"I'm not them." Lukas shrugged. "And I never will be. So don't worry about it. You're still Will, Mr. Sunshine."_

_Will sat up, now laying over Lukas in the sand. Lukas' head rested comfortably, his eyes staring up into Will's._

_That night was their first kiss. Will's first kiss._

_They never kissed again._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

"Guys!" Leo ran down the stairs, his face red. "Guys, you won't believe this!"

Percy looked up from his game of pool with Jason. "What? Did you accidentally eat a golf ball again?"

"Did you ever get that checked out?" Annabeth asked thoughtfully. "I really think you should."

"I agree," Piper added. "Doesn't that hurt?"

"People, focus!" Leo clapped his hands together. "I was going to go in my room when I heard..." *dramatic pause* "Will and Nico, doing the do!"

Stunned silence met his announcement before Percy took off towards the stairs, pool stick in hand. "Not for long, they don't..."

"Second that," Jason followed Percy. "Not our little Nico."

"Guys," Annabeth stood up and grabbed Percy's arm. "He's happy. Let him be happy."

"He's probably high!" Percy insisted. "What if Will's taking advantage of that!?"

"Then I'll gladly assist you with bashing his face in. But we don't know that. All we know is that they're happy together. So lay off." Annabeth sat back down and pulled Percy with her. "Just let him be happy. The poor boy needs it."

Percy sighed heavily. "Ever since they talked at Nico's house earlier they've been acting weird..."

"Will went to Nico's house? Alone?" Jason asked. "When?"

"During school," Percy looked up at him. "They were fighting and then he went over there to talk to Nico. Then they were inseparable."

"Maybe something happened earlier," Piper spoke up. "Maybe they kissed but never...never had time together until..."

"My bed!" Leo suddenly cried out, making everyone jump in surprise. "Not my bed! And my new blankets! I'M GONNA KILL THEM!"

"You can wash the blankets. I'll help you." Calypso moved a hand to Leo's shoulder. "Just sit down. If we're all silent when they get back they're going to know we know. So get back to what you all were doing."

Percy reluctantly went back over to the pool table, shooting a suspicious look to the staircase. "If they don't come down soon..."

"Then they probably fell asleep," Annabeth replied. "Just finish your game so I can play Piper."

Percy huffed before pointing his stick at Jason. "Come on, time to finish this." He looked towards the stairs again, frowning. If it was about what Nico told him about Blue...

He had to talk to Will.


	11. Chapter 10

_"No, I'm not comfortable with it." Lukas insisted over the video chat. He sat on his bed with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders, everything blue. "You know my family. I told you this."_

_Will pouted, in his own bed. He had a hoodie on and earbuds in his ears, each gifts that Lukas had given him. "But...I want to be able to date my boyfriend..."_

_Lukas sighed. "You're lucky I'm home alone right now or I'd kill you for saying that."_

_Will smiled playfully. "You love me."_

_Lukas rolled his eyes. "What gave it away?"_

_Will pecked the computer screen before sitting back. "Have you done your summer homework yet?"_

_Lukas shook his head. "I'm procrastination at its finest, remember?"_

_Will grabbed his phone to look at the date. "We have a week left, Lukas! You need to read the entire book and do the essay!"_

_"You think I'm actually reading that book?" Lukas snorted. "You're so wrong. I'll go online and get an essay there."_

_"Lukas..." Will pouted. "Please actually do it. For me."_

_Lukas cracked a small smile. "You're going to be the death of me."_

_"What a wonderful way to die," Will replied playfully._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will kissed Nico's forehead. "Okay, I'm leaving now."

Nico looked up at him sleepily, his eyes barely open. "K..."

Will smiled down at him for a minute before walking out of the room, fixing his shirt. He descended the staircase slowly, his hands deep in his pockets and a smile that refused to come off his face.

As he entered the room where the others were, they all turned at once to look at him. Piper and Annabeth were at the pool table (but no game seemed to be in session) and Percy, Jason, and Leo were playing monopoly. All the pieces were thrown around haphazardly, everything about those three screaming that they would never hold an actual game of monopoly. Not even when Hell froze over.

"Um...hi?" Will squeaked.

"Will, I'll drive you home." Percy basically ran to meet him. "Come on, got your things?"

Will nodded. "Yeah, sorry for having to leave so soon. My mom wants me home to help out with dinner." Not a complete lie, but still far from the truth. He was uncomfortable around them now (they obviously knew what happened), he was tired, his mother was worried, and Nico was too tired to talk.

"It's fine." Percy led him out. "Did you have fun?"

Will blushed darkly. "I-I don't know what you mean."

Percy smiled at him knowingly. "Get in the car. We'll talk about you and little Neeks."

Will got into the passenger's seat, putting his bookbag at his feet. "So..."

Percy started the car and pulled out of the driveway, surprisingly not too bad of a driver. "You and Nico..."

Will looked away awkwardly. "We don't have to talk about this."

"He told me about Lukas, or Blue, or whatever you want to call him." Percy addressed. "What do you call him, by the way? Nico uses both interchangeably and it gets me messed up."

Will frowned sadly. "Lukas. He liked Blue but Lukas was my name for him. Everyone else used Blue and I used Lukas."

Percy nodded a little. "So you want me to call him Blue?"

Will nodded.

"Okay, he told me about Blue." Percy began again. "And about...how everything relates. So I'm the one that's going to make sure that you like Nico for Nico, not because you can see him as Blue."

"I wouldn't do that-"

"You called Nico Lukas." Percy retorted. He gripped onto the steering wheel for a minute before his grip relaxed. "Look, Nico's like a little brother to me. Jason and I...all of us...we look out for him. He's been through a lot, you know? And he's too humble to see if anything is wrong. So that's our job."

"I'm sorry for calling him Lukas." Will stared down at his hands. "I didn't mean it and it won't happen again."

"Good."

"And I like Nico for Nico, not just because of Lukas," Will promised. "And I'll make sure he knows that. Lukas...Lukas is gone, and I've moved on."

"Moving on isn't easy," Percy empathized. "My mom...it took her awhile to get over my dad. But then she met Paul. Even after they started dating, it took awhile to remind herself that Paul wasn't my dad, that he was a different person." He paused for a moment, cursing under his breath when they hit a red light. He glanced over at Will, putting a hand on his shoulder. "It's hard to get over someone, I know. And you're going to need some help. You need to talk to Nico about it, not just try to call him his right name."

Will looked up at Percy, cracking a smile. "I didn't know you could go so deep into conversations like this."

Percy shrugged, letting him go as he started to drive again. "After you see something bad happen, you try like hell to make sure it doesn't happen ever again━to anyone. And I've seen how hard it is to move across the country and into a new relationship. So I'm trying to help."

"Thanks, Percy," Will breathed out. "I...I'm sorry about your parents. Is your mom doing better?"

Percy nodded. "Her and Paul are married. She's doing good. She's starting to like it here."

"Why did she move here, of all places?" Will looked out the window at the people they passed by. "Why a dangerous city in Ohio?"

Percy laughed. "Honestly? She didn't think my father would look for us here."

A smile tugged at Will's lips. "Well, she was right about that."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Will stared at Lukas as the class went on around them, a blush growing on his tan cheeks. Lukas was a couple rows in front of him, in perfect view. His blue hair was swept out of his face and his eyes stung beautifully in the classroom's lights. His contacts looked real but everyone knew they were fake. It was just who Lukas was._

_Doodling on his notebook, Will pretended to take notes but instead started to draw Lukas. His pointy nose, his small chin, his crooked smile and the spark in his eyes that let everyone around him know to stay clear, they were looking at a man that would change the world. He'd go out in a bang, refuse to fade out. Will sadly knew that Lukas would make sure that that would be the truth._

_"What's this?" the boy next to Will snatched his notebook out from underneath him, a smirk plastered on his face. Octavian Riley, a bastard and bully. "We haven't been taking notes for the past ten minutes."_

_Lukas looked back, his eyes switching between the two._

_"Give it back." Will reached to take it but Octavian moved so he couldn't reach it._

_"Just give it back," Lukas spoke up. "What are you even trying to prove?"_

_Octavian looked down at the notebook. "That our own William Solace is gay."_

_Lukas froze, his fingers finally stopping their constant movement. He looked to Will then back to Octavian, trying to figure out how much the other boy knew._

_"I am not!" Will defended. "I was just drawing someone, nothing important. Now, give it back."_

_"Just drawing someone?" Octavian held the notebook out so everyone could see, revealing a shirtless Lukas. "Hm, look what we have here. Was Will going off of memory?"_

_"You don't know what you're talking about!" Lukas stood up, his face red and his fists balled. Will looked around for help, but realized the teacher had stepped out of the room for something._

_"I think I do," Octavian continued. "You and Will, sitting in a tree?" He grinned. "Evans, you and Solace? Being a bad boy? Your parents would love to hear about this."_

_"You don't know what you're talking about!" Lukas repeated, but this time in fear. "You have no idea!"_

_"What, you're not gay?" Octavian asked._

_Will felt his gaze drop with his heart, the fact that Lukas would reject him in public making his soul ache. Of course, Lukas had the right in a situation like that, but it made him feel horrible._

_And Lukas must have seen Will's reaction because he said the last thing Will would have expected that day. "I said, you don't know what you're talking about. You said, and I quote, 'Sitting in a tree'. No, we don't make out in trees. We make out in his room." With that Lukas stood up, slammed a book shut, and strolled out of the classroom._

_That was the last time Will saw him._


	12. Chapter 11

Will walked into his house with his bookbag over his shoulder, his hair still wet from the pool. "Mom, I'm home!"

Laying the bookbag down, he looked around the yellow kitchen. Birds chirped from outside, a windchime rang in the distance, kids' voices rose up as they played. The only thing he didn't hear was his parents.

"Mom?" Will closed the open windows before heading upstairs, each step causing the wooden floor to let out a noise of defeat. He got to outside his parents' bedroom, stopping outside of the closed door. He knocked once, calling for her one more time. Nothing greeted him.

"Mom, your car's here. I know you're in there." Will tried the door to find it locked. Reaching up, he grabbed the key from the top of the doorframe and put it in the lock. Turn it, pull it out, open the door. Something so mundane felt like his last moments. When the door opened with a groan, Will stepped foot in the room to what he had most feared growing up.

"Mom!" Will ran to the corner and collapsed beside his mother, his hand flying to his neck to check her pulse. It was faint, but it was there. He looked her over, frowning at how pale she was. She was covered in bruises, her long skirt having ridden up past her thighs. Blood dripped from the nail marks, causing Will's heart to sink. "Mom, did dad do this?"

She stayed unconscious, her pale eyelashes covering her blue eyes. Will didn't waste any more time as he picked her up and ran from the room, taking her car as he drove her to the hospital, entering the ER for the first time in a year.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_"Will?" his mother knocked on his bedroom door late into the night. "Can I come in?"_

_Will looked up from his phone, having been trying to contact Lukas all night. "Yeah, come in."_

_She walked in and closed the door behind her, her eyes filled with sadness. "You need to come with me, okay? I'll explain in the car."_

_Will frowned in confusion, looking at the time. "It's almost midnight, mom."_

_"I know. We need to go." she threw him a jacket and got his shoes. "It's really important, Will. Please believe me. We need to go."_

_Will got his jacket and shoes on before getting up. "Where are we going?" He let her lead him out of the room, his hands starting to shake as he got into the car. "Where are we going, mom?"_

_She got in and started to drive well over the speed limit. "To the hospital."_

_Will looked over at her slowly, his heart dropping. "Why...? Who's hurt?"_

_She didn't answer, but he could tell it was something bad. Her hands clenched the stirring wheel and she almost hit another car twice, her face pale in the streetlights._

_"Mom, tell me," he demanded. "Who's hurt?"_

_She glanced over at him, her face guilty. "When was the last time you saw Lukas?"_

_"At school," Will answered. "Why are you asking me... Mom... What happened?"_

_She looked back to the road, her lips pursed. "Something happened tonight, Will. You'll see at the hospital."_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will paced in the waiting room, having been talking to the cops for a good hour. He told them what happened, how he found her, how she and his dad's relationship had been. A warrant was put out for his father's arrest when they did a rape test on his mother and it came back positive for his father's genetics.

He wasn't allowed to see her, them having taken her into surgery for some internal bleeding. He felt like his life was falling apart, everything he had known somehow having broken in an instant. Suddenly, he knew he would never be on good terms with his father again. He was out of his life for good.

His phone buzzed as a couple texts came through, but he didn't care enough to look at them. Nico could wait until later when Will knew his mother was alive. That'd be the only time he'd be stable enough to hold a conversation, let alone a conversation where he'd have to lie about his whereabouts and what was happening.

Will didn't go to the cafeteria, didn't leave to get a drink or go to the bathroom. He stared at those double doors from the waiting room, waiting for his mom's doctor to come out. He didn't, but he saw Nico di Angelo stroll in about an hour later.

"Will, you didn't answer my texts." Nico accused, his arms crossed. "Why are you here?" He was dressed in black skinny jeans, black fingerless gloves, and a blue hoodie. It was the first time Will had ever seen him wear color, but he wasn't very surprised that it was blue. Everywhere he went he seemed to see that color now, including the clothes that Percy wore.

"How did you even know I was here?" Will asked, wiping at his tear-stained face.

Nico glanced around the waiting room. "You see that guy in blue in the corner?"

"Yeah, he came in with some gang-related shooting." Will replied, not wanting to admit it but having been scared. "What about him?"

"He let me know you were here. I was asking around, including deep into my contacts." Nico sat beside Will. "I was going to talk to you about...about what we did...but this seems more important. So, what happened?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Will ran into the ER, tears already pouring down his face. He froze when he saw the doctor talking to Lukas' mother, saying the boy hadn't made it._

_Lukas hadn't made it._

_"No!" Will ran up to the doctor, his fists clenched and shaking at his sides. "You're lying! You're lying! I know he's alive!"_

_The doctor looked down at him, his green eyes used to seeing the pain and all the crushed dreams. He shook his head once before turning his attention back to Lukas' mother. "I'm sorry, but he didn't make it. Would you like to see him?"_

_The woman nodded slightly, a piece of paper clenched to her chest. She glanced towards Will, her swollen eyes full of grief. "Come on, William. Let's go see him."_

_"He's...he's not dead..." Will ran a hand through his hair, sobs starting to escape his lips. "He's not dead!"_

_"Follow me if you want to see him." the doctor cut in, sounding bored. "We'll need to take him down to the morgue soon."_

_Lukas' mother started to walk after him, grabbing Will's arm so he'd follow. He followed but kept repeating that Lukas wasn't dead, that it was all a joke. That Lukas was at his home, in his blue room, finding a deal on the bomber jacket that he had been dreaming about. Will had secretly gotten it for him and had it under his bed in waiting for Lukas' birthday._

_But now he'd never get to wear it._

_The doctor stopped outside of a room in the ER, his hand moving to rest on her shoulder. "You can go in if you'd like. You can touch him and everything. I'll be around if you need me."_

_He walked off and into another room, where someone was groaning loudly in pain. Will watched him absentmindedly, scared to look back to where he was told Lukas was. Once he saw his body, he'd have to admit it. Admit that he was dead._

_The sobs of Lukas' mother brought him to look towards the open door, to look at the table and the body she had pulled the white sheet back from..._

_Will would never be able to get that sight out of his head. It'd take months before he'd be able to close his eyes without seeing it. That pale face, once so full of life, now dead and empty. Eyes permanently closed to the world, a world he was going to beat. He'd kick and fight until he got what he wanted, until he changed the world. Now he couldn't. He had stopped fighting when it had really counted. His blue hair, never needing to be dyed again, laid around him like a sick halo. Will couldn't see any wounds, but it was obvious that the boy laying in front of him was dead._

_Dead and gone. Forever._


	13. Chapter 12

_"Will?"_

_Will refused to look up, his eyes closed and his face buried in Lukas' hair. It still smelled like him, even though some blood was mixed in. Will could smell the sea water still in his skin, feel the roughness from the ocean winds. That scent━the scent of Lukas after death━was what he'd forever associate with the color blue._

_"Will, come on." his mother's soft voice came closer. "They need to take him down to the morgue now, sweetie. They need to."_

_Will shook his head, trying to stop himself from crying again. "Go away."_

_She moved a hand to his shoulder, her touch soft and hesitant. "You need to come see something, anyways. He...he left a note, Will. His mother wants you to read it."_

_Will choked back tears. "Have you?"_

_She shook her head before realizing that his eyes were still closed. "No, but I think you should. He was your best friend, Will. If his mom wants you to read it, then he probably wanted to tell you something."_

_Will slowly opened his eyes, wincing as the air met the dry and swollen lids. "Fine... They'll take care of him, right?"_

_She nodded again. "Of course, Will. They'll take care of him. You'll see him again at the funeral, okay?"_

_Will looked back down at Lukas, taking in the sight of his pale face and sunken features. He didn't look like Lukas anymore. He was just another dead body ready to be put in the ground._

_"Okay, let's go." Will got up, finally tearing his gaze from Lukas. "Where's the note?"_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nico sat with Will for hours, his arm wrapped around his shoulder. Will rambled on about how Lukas had died, how his body looked, and what had happened to his mother. Through the unorganized craze, Nico finally understood what had happened. He understood why the cops had been there, understood why Will refused to go home. His life was just as torn up as Nico's.

Finally, Nico couldn't take the silence anymore. He wrapped his arms around Will's shoulders, making the teenage boy jump in surprise. "Why don't we take a food break? I'm buying."

Will immediately shook his head. "I'm not leaving her."

Nico sighed. "Will, you sitting here isn't doing anyone any good. You deserve a break."

"What happens if they come out with an update and I'm gone?" Will demanded. "What then? What if I leave and she...and she..."

"I'll go let the doctor know we're going to be in the cafeteria." Nico shrugged. "As easy as that. If they have an update, they'll come get us. Okay?"

Will hesitantly nodded. "Deal."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Will held the letter in his hands, Lukas' mom having given it to him. "To always remember" or something like that. Will hadn't seen it before, but she was as mad at him as he was of himself. It was his fault, all his fault..._

_Even Lukas had said so._

_"Whomever it concerns,_

_That's how these things usually start out, right? I don't know, I never paid attention in English class. Will Solace sat in front of me with all his capturing beauty._

_And there was the fact that I wanted to travel the world with him, take him to Peru to surf, take him to the most dangerous mountains to climb. I'd have to guilt him into it, but he'd eventually climb with me to make sure I was safe._

_I love you, mom. I always did, even when I found out that you had adopted me. I never got to meet my birth mother...tell her sorry for me? I looked it up. Her name was Maria di Angelo. Send her my best. And my birth brother... Tell him I'm sorry, too. I wish I could have met them._

_But everyone found out I was gay today. You should have seen Will's face, mom. He got so sad when I went to deny him. I just couldn't. All my classmates found out, so I knew you and dad would. He would have killed me, mom. You know he would have. I didn't want to die at his hands. That'd be too easy._

_In the words of Kurt Cobain, it's better to burn out than to fade away. I loved you, Will, always did, always will (ha). But after saying that for you today, I couldn't keep living. I knew it as soon as I said it. I'm sorry it had to turn out like this. I'm sorry._

_But maybe fate really is a thing._

_Love you both,_

_Blue (Lukas)"_

_Will took the note with him to Ohio, even though he knew it'd continue to remind him of that sadness, that grief and pain. But it'd keep Lukas alive inside of him._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

Nico bought Will a full meal and made sure he ate ever piece of it, knowing that the broken boy would need ever drop of food he could get. And because it was Friday, he got each of them a coffee and sat with him in the cafeteria for awhile. They talked about random things, Will blabbering on about what he and Lukas used to do. Nico didn't mind. He liked hearing about Lukas, sometimes, when the time was right. He liked knowing what he used to be like, what made Will happy.

They eventually made their way back up to the waiting room in silence, Will's mouth not seeming to work when he remembered what was happening to his mother. His father had beat her bad, bad enough to cause internal bleeding of all sorts. It made Will sick.

The doctor finally came out to update them when the surgery was over, his blue scrubs wrinkled and dirty. He looked over at Nico, an amused smile hinting at his face. "Mr. di Angelo, wasn't expecting to see you here."

"I'm not always the patient." Nico replied lightly. "How's Will's mother? Is she alive?"

The doctor nodded, his attention going to Will. "Would you like to come see her? She's not awake yet, but she's going to be okay."


	14. Chapter 13

Will sat with his mother in the hospital for days, never leaving to stop home or go to school. The only time he left her bedside was to go to the bathroom, and even that was a rush that'd impress anybody. Nico brought him his meals and the next Friday, he helped Will get his mother home. His father had been arrested, which made Will feel only a sick sense of relief. It was his _father_ , but he had also almost killed his mother.

Will had been siding by his mother for a long time, now, even if he never realized it.

The Tuesday before she went home, his mother felt better but still had some pain. She wasn't as weak, but she relied on her son to help her eat and to get her water. He swore he didn't mind, but she still felt guilty.

"Will?" Sage Sollace, the woman he'd always look up to, could barely turn her head to look at her son after Nico had left the room. "Who was that boy? He's been over a lot."

Will held her hand, his other hand moving to get some hair out of her pale face. "It's a long story...but you should know. I only recently just found out. Nico and I talked...and we filled in all the holes we've had in each other's stories."

Will took a deep breath before beginning. "You remember Lukas, right? He had you call him Blue. Well, his birth name was Vincent di Angelo. He was adopted. His birth parents━Maria and Hades di Angelo━they were Nico's real parents. Nico...Nico was the boy that just walked out. Nico and Lukas were biological twins. That's why they look so much alike. Nico's been looking for Lukas...I had to let him know he was...dead."

Sage's eyes widened. "Will...I can barely believe it..."

"I know," Will insisted. "I can't, either. He reminds me so much of him, mom. So much... He helps me not miss Lukas anymore, mom."

"But he isn't Lukas." her grip tightened on his hand. "You need to remember that. He isn't Blue. He's his own person."

"I know." Will's eyes softened with sadness. "I know."

"Do you like him for himself, not for Blue?" Sage asked softly. "If you do...that's good. That's really good. But you need to move on from Blue, Will."

Will nodded, hanging his head low. "I feel like I'm cheating on him, momma."

"Will...come lay by me." she patted the bed next to her. Will got up and laid by her, careful of her IV's and wires. "Good... Will, I've told you about Apollo, right?"

Will nodded. "He died..."

She nodded. "I felt like I was cheating on him, at first. With my own husband. It's a normal thing. But you can get through it, I promise. Just talk to Nico and he'll help you."

"Did dad ever help you?" Will asked quietly, his head resting on her shoulder.

"If he had been a better person, he would have," she replied. "If he had been a better person... And this Nico sounds like a good person."

"He is, he is, mom," Will promised. "He's absolutely amazing. The coffees on Friday's and the swimming on the sixth floor and lunches and Leo's room..."

"I don't understand any of that, but it seems like everything from here in Ohio." she smiled at him. "Everything you love about him has nothing to do with Blue."

Will stared at the empty air for a minute before nodding. "Yeah... I guess you're right."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monday morning, school started again. Will was reluctant to leave his mother but her sister had come to stay with them, so she was at least not alone in her recovery as he got back to his school work. He needed to if he was ever going to become a doctor.

Will walked up to his locker feeling as he did the first day, sinking under the gazes of the high schoolers around him. He had missed a week and came back as healthy as ever, and the other noticed it. Their eyes dug into him, searched him through...

"Hey, Will." Percy greeted as he got to his own locker. "How's your mom doing?"

Will took a minute before responding, slowly having learned that Nico seemed to tell Percy everything. "Better. My aunt's staying with her while I'm at school. She can walk herself to the bathroom, now."

"That's good." Percy smiled. "I'm glad. Did you see what she sent Nico?"

Will looked over at him in confusion. "No...?"

"Oh, you have to see this." Percy dragged Will away, forgetting to even shut their lockers. "She texted him Wednesday. I'm surprised he never showed you."

"We haven't had time when it's been just me and him." Will explained. "Where's his locker, anyway?"

"He doesn't use his locker." Percy relayed. "Half his books are in my locker and the other are in Annabeth's. His locker is literally on the other side of the school." Percy got to Annabeth's locker and sat beside her. Nico sat in the little corner there with Jason beside him, both asleep against the wall behind them. "Hey, Annie."

"You found Will." Annabeth smiled at Will. "Are you doing better?"

Will nodded before looking to Percy. "Should I wake him up or...?"

Annabeth looked over at Nico. "Oh, you mean your boyfriend?" She got a rubber band out of her purse before flicking it into Nico's face, causing the other boy to start awake. "There you go, Will."

"Thanks," Will sat beside Nico on the cold hallway floor. "How did you fall asleep here?"

"Sleep exhaustion does a lot to you," Nico admitted, laying his head on Will's shoulder as a yawn escaped his lips. "I was up all night doing this stupid project for stupid Italian."

"If it's stupid, why are you taking it?" Will asked teasingly. "And Percy said you had something to show me."

"What would that be?" Nico mumbled, his eyes closing again. "Cause Percy's an idiot."

"A text my mother sent you," Will explained, shaking Nico to wake him up again. "She sent you a text? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because," Nico grumbled, getting his phone out. "It's private."

"You told Percy." Will pointed out. "I just...I just want to know... If she was mean to you or something... I told her everything...about Lukas..."

"I know, she told me." Nico handed him the phone. "Read it, if you want. She's kinda just saying she's glad you have me, or something. Nothing much."

Will took the phone and read over the text his mother had sent to Nico, smiling a little as he looked at her words. She was thanking him, thanking him for making Will happy, and assuring him that she was all for their relationship. Not to mention the bit at the end, when she apologized for everything that had happened with Lukas.

"She's a good mother," Nico commented.

Will nodded in agreement. "She is."


	15. Chapter 14

School in Ohio turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to Will. At the time he moved, he thought it'd be the worst thing to ever happen and he might end up right by Lukas in the ground. Now, however, he saw how happy he had become.

His father stayed in jail. Will didn't bother to answer his phone calls or visit him (if that was even allowed). His father was a thing of the past, and it was time for Will to move on, just as he had to do with Lukas' death. Keep moving on, keep looking forward, keep loving.

Will thought things were pretty okay until he was reminded full force that Nico di Angelo was a drug addict.

Nico hadn't been at school that day but had texted Will that he was down with the flu, so Will didn't worry much. That night, he got the call from the hospital, the same doctor talking to him that treated his mother. In his words, Nico had overdosed, "again". Again, he had endangered his very life just because of some useless drug...

Will rushed to the hospital with the need to talk some sense into the boy if he lived. Nico couldn't do this, couldn't risk his own life when he saw how much Lukas' death had affected him. Will couldn't take another death, couldn't take another funeral. He just couldn't. Not when Lukas' still wouldn't leave him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Will numbly sat in the hard chair as the people walked around him, talking to each other in short whispers about how they knew Lukas, how they knew someone that knew him, how they saw him a couple times down at the beach. None of them had really known him. Nobody but Will._

_"Will," Lukas' mother sat beside him, her eyes red and puffy from crying. "You...you have the note..."_

_Will nodded, not taking his eyes off of the open casket. He wanted to go up there, shake Lukas awake, yell at him for pulling this horrible prank. But he couldn't move a finger._

_"You've read it?" she asked. "Because he...he explains. And I hope you know why he did it, Will. You should know."_

_Will simply nodded again._

_She pursed her lips, obviously having been expecting a response. "William...I won't tell anybody. I'm not going to disgrace my son like that. As your classmates will be told, he said in his letter that everything about him being gay was a joke. That's what everyone will know. Don't you dare go telling anyone anything different."_

_"How'd he kill himself?" Will asked after a minute. "I saw his body. No evidence of drowning, no bruises around his neck from hanging, no slit across his neck. How'd he do it?"_

_She looked down, sickness washing over her face. "Why would you ask such a question..."_

_"I need to know." Will replied bluntly. "So tell me. Unless you want me telling everyone about me and Lukas."_

_She shook her head in disgrace. "Slit his wrists, laid on his bed, and watched as he bled out. His eyes were still open, watching that blood pour out when we walked in."_

_Will looked down at his lap, a guilty smile flashing across his face. "Sounds like him." He sat in silence for a minute before looking to Lukas' mother, his eyes flashing in anger. "Mrs. Evans, your son was gay. No if, ands, or buts about it. He was gay. And if you can't accept that, then you didn't love him. It's as simple as that. People like you are the reason he killed himself."_

_Will got up, went and kissed Lukas' forehead, and left._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The hospital room was cold and unfriendly, with bars over the clock and nothing out in the open to be grabbed. Nico was laying on one of the beds, his eyes closed and his skin pale. A tube was down his throat and connected to a machine beside him, along with an IV in his arm.

"Did they find him in time?" Will asked Percy, who sat by Nico's bed playing on his phone. "Is he going to be alright?"

Percy nodded, not stopping his current game. "Yeah, he'll be fine. This happens all the time."

" _All the time_?" Will moved further into the room and sat beside Nico on the bed. "He overdoses a lot? You know how dangerous that is?"

"Each time, there's a smaller chance of survival." Percy rattled off. "Yeah, I know. And I don't like it. But there's nothing I can do about it, so I just watch out, find him when I can."

"Get him clean!" Will argued. "Get him in a program, get him away from the-"

"You really think that would work?" Percy asked sharply. "Really? It's _Nico_ we're talking about, Will, not Blue. And Nico does whatever he wants to. Drugs are one of the only things that make him feel alive. I hate it as much as you, but I'm not about to take that from him. He's lost too much."

Will rolled his eyes. "That's stupid logic, Percy. You need a better excuse."

"Okay, how about this?" Percy turned the screen of his phone off. "Who's going to pay for rehab? Who's going to bury Nico's body when his heart gives out during withdrawal? If they use a drug to get him through withdraw, who's going to pay for the rehab of that drug?"

Will shook his head, knowing then that Percy had given up. But Will never would, not when Nico was still alive. There were ways to get past drugs, ways to start over. He just had to expose Nico to them.

"Tell me when he's awake." Will walked out of the room, getting his phone from his pocket while doing so.


	16. Chapter 15

The hospital room was silent after the doctor exited, taking the tube from Nico's throat with him. The window was closed but the occasional siren was heard, the bustle of the hospital broke through the closed door, Nico's roommate snored slightly as they slept in their restraints.

"You're an idiot." Percy finally stated, watching Nico rub his sore throat. "Will's worried about you."

"He'll be fine." Nico croaked. "Help me change out of this hospital gown."

"He's hell-bent on saving you." Percy didn't move to grant Nico's request. "Like rehab and everything."

Nico grimaced. "Ew."

"Imagine how you'd feel if you were clean." Percy tried. "Imagine being-"

"High? Sounds amazing." Nico sat up. "Give me my clothes, Percy."

Percy handed the clothes over, giving up on the fight he had been having with Nico for years.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Will did research until his eyes were about to fall out and until he had piles of different ways to help Nico. He knew it had been possible, knew it would be. But confronting Nico about it wasn't to do with if it was possible. It was the fear of change. Changing their relationship, changing the way Nico saw him.

What if he hated him? The one time he and Lukas had gotten in a fight had been a week wasted. Will would have done anything to get that week back, to have seen Lukas smile more. But he blew it with a stupid fight. Would that be what would happen between him and Nico?

"Will?" his mother sat beside him at the kitchen table, frowning at the tabs he had up on his laptop. "What are you doing?"

"Nico...has a drug problem." Will admitted. "He overdosed today. I want to help."

"Oh, Will..." she looked at him sadly. "I wish I could help. What are you planning?"

"I don't know." Will shrugged helplessly. "There's rehab centers and everything but I would have to convince him to go. He isn't one to do that."

Sage kissed his forehead, her eyes sad and worn from all she had seen her son go through. "You need to talk to him."

"Percy has." Will replied, exasperated. "He's tried for years, he said."

"Percy isn't you." she pointed to him. "You're Will, not Percy. You're the one that Nico likes in a relationship sense, not Percy. You're the one that would be the most hurt if he overdosed and never woke up. Tell him that."

Will's heart sunk at the realization of what could happen but smiled at her idea. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll try when he gets home."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Percy drove Nico back home in silence, his eyes on the road and his heart in his stomach. How many more times would this happen, going to the hospital, going home? Would there be a day they'd go to the hospital but he'd never bring Nico home?

"Here you go," Percy pulled into the brick driveway, putting the car in park. "Do you need me to help you in?"

"I'll be fine." Nico opened his car door, his hand shaking while doing so. "You just go back home before Will sees I'm home. Once he does, I won't get a moment's rest."

"I thought you liked Will," Percy mumbled.

"I do." Nico glared at him. "I never said I didn't."

"You act like he's a nuisance." Percy pointed out.

Nico rolled his eyes. "I like him, Percy. Close to love. But I'm not in the mood for anybody today."

"Why, cause you need to go get high?" Percy accused. "Because you just got out of the hospital for that."

Nico stepped out of the car, slamming the door behind him before making his way up to his house. Percy watched him take five minutes to unlock the door, his trembling fingers unable to hold the key straight. Once he was inside and the door was closed behind him, Percy texted Will before driving off.

Nico didn't see that Percy texted Will but guessed quickly what would come. He got the materials, did the drugs, ate whatever he could find in his kitchen. He quickly self-destructed before Will could stop him. Why? He couldn't tell himself.

It only took twenty minutes for Will to come pounding on his front door. Nico opened it from the floor, having been sitting beside it so he wouldn't have to keep getting up. He could feel the ruin he was in, feel the grease in his hair and the dirt and drugs that stunk up his body. But he

simply

didn't

care.

"Nico..." Will kneeled beside the dark haired boy, his face sinking in disappointment. "What have you done...?"

"Get high?" Nico guessed, his vision blurred and doubled. "I feel sick."

"You're bleeding." Will took Nico's wrist in his hands. "You lost a lot of blood, Nico... Let's get you fixed up. Come on, let's go to the bathroom."

Nico crawled into Will's lap. "Carry me."

Will did as he was told, knowing he wouldn't be able to get Nico to walk. He sat him on the bathroom sink before starting to clean his wrist off, cleaning out the cuts Nico had done to himself while too high to think straight. "Why did you do this?"

"I thought...I thought it'd fix everything." Nico's head was slumped against his chest. "I wanted to fix everything."

"I know how you can fix everything." Will kissed each cut before wrapping his wrist up. "You can go to rehab. You'll fix everything, Nico. I promise."

Nico pulled his arms close to himself. "I'm cold, Will."

Will sighed but picked him up again, carrying him upstairs to his bedroom. "Will you try it? For me?"

Nico shrugged lazily. "Maybe."

"Promise me." Will laid him down and covered him with the blankets. "Promise me you'll try, Nico."

Nico huffed but agreed, his eyes closed against the lights of his room. Soon enough, he fell asleep, but Will wasn't upset. He got Nico's word and that was all he needed.


	17. Chapter 16

The day Will brought Nico to the rehab facility, the sun shone in the sky as if he was supposed to be happy, as if everything was going to be alright. But in reality, Nico felt like he would die any second. Who went to a facility? Who ever got clean? Yes, Nico had heard the stories, but he never believed them.

Will dropped him off with nothing more than a kiss and a smile, and then left him alone to the pleasures of the doctors. The staff was helpful alright, but Nico's drug habits weren't going to go down without a fight.

The fight lasted two weeks, longer than most others. But on a drizzle-filled Thursday, Nico won his fight. He beat his demons.

It was one of those days when the sun didn't look like the sun, like it didn't exist at all but was another faze of the moon's. The clouds covered most light and the rain kept dribbling on, spilling into his shoes and soaking his socks. As he waited for Will, he stared up at the sky as if he had never seen it before.

It was taking everything in him not to go home and get high again.

Will pulled up soon enough, his tires squeaking all the way. When he finally came to a stop he poked his head out of the car, smiling a certain smile Nico had been missing. "Hey, long time no see!"

Nico stomped up to the car, his heart beating with too much life to allow his brain to come into play. He threw an arm around Will's neck to keep him in reach before kissing him, having missed that boy too much to do anything else at that moment.

When they finally pulled away, it was only for a breath of air and nothing more. They kissed again, again after that and then another time. They kissed in that parking lot until Nico's heart felt like it would explode and his head went dizzy. When Will finally pulled away for good, his lips were swollen and he gasped for breath. "Missed me?"

"Shut up." Nico hopped into the car, his brain not registering the embarrassment until he was seated. "It's been awhile, Solace."

Will threw an arm around Nico, a laugh escaping his lips. "So it has, di Angelo."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

School went back to normal, their relationship was normal, everything was normal. But every day, Nico checked where he used to hide the heroin and checked to see if he had the money to buy more. He missed it, missed the high, and he wasn't sure if that would ever go away.

But he liked life without it. He knew what was going on around him, knew everything that was happening. Healthier each day, he could do things he couldn't have done before. Work went by fast, school went by fast, time spent with his friends went by too fast for his liking. For the first time now that he wasn't clouded by drugs, he saw how fast life went by. Before long, they had spiraled into the end of their junior year.

Then the summer hit, Will left to visit relatives in California, and Nico remembered just how lonely he had felt when he started drugs for the first time, relived the same emotions he had when he found that drug dealer the first time. Everything felt the same.

Most days, he didn't move to go find that drug dealer again. Other days, the really bad days, he'd make it all the way down the block before going back home. But he'd always turn back, he'd never make it far enough. He'd never buy those drugs.

The cafe he worked at was as home to him as the house where he slept. He spent his shifts there, spent his dinners and coffee breaks there. He made breakfast foods, made coffees and teas, served whoever came in. A place with barely anyone to work it, Nico took a job when it opened, especially in the heat of his summer boredom.

He was cleaning up that Saturday night when Percy and Annabeth came in, Piper and Jason following. Nico let them take the booth they always did before going over, scowling slightly at their smiling faces. "You couldn't wait until I got off, could you?"

Percy took the menu from Nico's hands, his hands flipping through the pages. "We're waiting for Leo. There's going to be a new kid this year and he's bringing him over."

Nico scowled. "A new kid? Again?"

Annabeth laughed. "You sure like the last new kid."

"He's back in California because he missed his stupid family." Nico crossed his arms. "Why did you trust Leo to go get this new kid?"

"He was the only one that wanted to drive all the way out there," Jason replied. "The kid lives pretty far. We were actually going to ask you if...if he can stay with you."

Nico rolled his eyes. "How am I surprised."

"You have that whole house to yourself." Percy pulled Nico so he was sitting with them in the booth. "Will said it'd be awesome."

"You asked Will?" Nico shook his head. "Wow, you're really trying."

"Percy's mom is making him," Annabeth admitted. "She saw the kid homeless."

"Annie!" Percy whisper-screamed. "We weren't supposed to tell him that!"

"So, let me get this straight." Nico held his hands up. "Leo is 'picking him up' so you can convince me to take him in when in reality they're probably sitting outside in the car."

Percy nodded. "Yep,"

Nico rolled his eyes. "I can't believe you guys. Is he even going to our school?"

Percy nodded. "My mom enrolled him. We would take him in but we have no room, not with Tyson and Estelle."

"Who's paying his tuition?" Nico sighed. "If I'm taking him in, I can't pay his tuition, too."

"It's taken care of," Percy promised. "So, is that a yes?"

Nico nodded. "Fine, whatever. But he can't live with me if he's doing drugs and stuff."

Percy got his phone out to text Leo, a smile of relief crossing his features. "Awesome. And I'd like a coke, please."

"Coffee." Piper and Annabeth spoke at the same time, soon followed by Jason. Nico nodded slightly before going to get their drinks, sighing at what he had gotten himself into. He wanted to go in the back, wanted to light up that heroin. He wanted to get high now, more than ever.

But he walked back into that main room, carrying those drinks. As he did, he watched Leo walk into the restaurant with a boy following closely, dressed in a blue hoodie and jeans. A boy that looked just like Nico...

The cups crashed to the floor, the glass shattered everywhere.


	18. Chapter 17

"Nico, wake up." Percy fanned Nico's face, having carried him to the booth after he passed out. "Nico?"

"Here," Jason handed Percy a glass of water. "It'll make this go faster."

Percy spilled the glass of water onto Nico's face, the cafe empty besides their friend group. It was late into Saturday night and probably early Sunday morning, the cafe unknown to the nightcrawlers.

Nico groaned as he struggled to open his eyes, his vision filling with the bright cafe lights and half of Percy's face. "What happened?"

"You fainted." a new voice stated, causing Nico to turn his head to face the newcomer...the one that looked so much like him...

"It can't be..." Nico breathed out, his eyes as wide as they could go. "What...how...does Will know?"

The boy's expression mimicked Nico's. "You know Will? I thought...California... No wonder I couldn't find him..."

"Hold up." Percy looked between the two, finally putting it together. He grabbed the other boy by the arm and pulled him away, his grip tight and his eyes narrowed. When they were in the bathrooms and out of hearing distance from the others, Percy let him go. "Lukas Evans, right?"

Lukas looked up at Percy, a gaunt face masked behind his personality of blue. His dyed hair, his fake eyes, his high cheekbones. Bruises lined his jaw and his bones stuck out wherever they could. Looking half-starved, he ended up being smaller and skinnier than Nico besides their relation. "Yeah... How did you know?"

Percy smacked him, harder than he had smacked Gabe the first time he hit his mother. "You don't realize what you did, do you? They think you're dead! Will-... You ruined Will, Lukas or Blue or Vincent or whoever you go by now. You ruined him. He thinks you killed himself because of him. And then...and then you just show up here...out of nowhere...basically gave Nico a heart attack."

"You know Will?" loved filled Lukas' offputting eyes. "Is he here? Can I see him?"

"He's visiting family in California," Percy replied bluntly. "Now, tell me everything that went through your thick skull to get you here. Now."

Lukas swept his eyes down, his hands clasped together and his eyes raw with passion. "I love Will...is...is he okay? I love him..."

"He blamed himself for your death! He's barely 'okay'." Percy sighed. "Okay, I'm sorry for yelling. But you better have a pretty damn good excuse."

"I do, I do." Lukas nodded. "Trust me, I do. I just...don't know if I should trust you..."

"Nico and Will tell me everything." Percy laughed. "I'm basically their therapist. It'll come back to me, anyway."

Lukas sighed, running a hand through his blue hair. The roots were dark, the same color as Nico's. "Fine, fine. Where do I begin?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Lukas knocked on the office door, his hands trembling. Having just come from school, he had his bookbag over his shoulder and his phone in his pocket. When his father didn't answer, he knocked again. "Dad? I have something important to talk to you about."_

_"Fine, come in." his father answered, sounding bored. "Hurry it up, Lukas."_

_Lukas entered the office quickly, closing the door behind him to make sure no one could eavesdrop. Once inside, he set his bookbag down. "Hi, dad."_

_His dad sat behind the desk, his glasses on as he peered at his laptop. Once Lukas spoke, he looked up into the eyes of the boy he had adopted. "Yes, what is it?"_

_"I needed to talk to you...about something important to me." Lukas began, his hands clenched at his sides. "I have to admit, I'm nervous."_

_"Don't be." his father leaned forward in interest. "What? Need money to travel to that mountain you want to climb? I can have it for you by Friday."_

_Lukas' eyes widened, his heart almost losing the ability to tell what it was truly feeling. After a minute he shook his head, a hand moving to his hair. "It's something else, actually."_

_His dad nodded. "Just tell me. What is it?"_

_"I'm gay." Lukas blurted out, his hand moving to cover his mouth. The damage had already been done, however, as his father heard exactly what he had said._

_It was silent for a good ten minutes before his father spoke, his voice cold and harsh. "I'll give you a choice."_

_"H-Hm?" Lukas looked up, having been cowering as near to the door as he could get._

_"You have a choice. I kill you, or you fake your death and leave for good." his father stated. "I can't have you in this house any longer and I can't have your mother going after you. It'd cause too much trouble, too much. I knew we shouldn't have adopted you."_

_Lukas stared at him, stared at him for some time in hopes it had all been a joke._

_But it hadn't been._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Percy shook his head in disgust. "That's a terrible father you had."

Lukas laughed without humor. "Tell me about it." They sat on the bathroom sinks, Lukas kicking his feet out in front of him. His blue converse, dirty and stained, looked like he had walked across the entire country in them. "So, I went with the only option that'd keep me alive. He wrote the note, I didn't. I would never have blamed Will. I love Will."

Percy cleared his throat. "Will...he moved on. He's with someone else, now."

Lukas tilted his head to the side but didn't look too upset, his face curious. "Who?"

Percy scratched the back of his neck, letting out a laugh between anxiety and curiosity. "Um... Funny, um... Nico. Nico di Angelo. The boy in there...that looked like you. Your long lost twin? Yeah, him."

Lukas' face fell, his expression turning sour. "Oh,"

Percy looked over at him nervously. "Oh? A good oh or a bad oh?"

"An oh." Lukas ran his hands through his hair. "Is it just because of...his looks...or does Will actually like him?"

"Will likes him." Percy insisted. "They really like each other, L...Blue. They're good for each other."

Lukas gave him a twisted smile. "That's good. I'm glad he's happy."

Percy watched him, watched this boy that he had heard so much about. "So...where have you been?"

Lukas let out a broken laugh. "Everywhere. Just walking, looking for someplace new, looking for food, looking for shelter. Just walking."

"And you ended up here." Percy whistled. "That's a far walk."

Lukas shrugged. "Some boats here and there, some hitchhiking. I got here."

Percy sighed. "That, you did."


	19. Chapter 18

The smell of coffee filled the air, the moon rose high in its perch in the sky. Dark eyes stared into blue, blue eyes stared into dark. Curiosity, tension, the hint of a task finally finished. Twins met for the first time since birth, not a word was spoken, not a word was thought. Just that alien sense that something, somehow, was different, changed for good.

It was Lukas that finally broke the silence.

"Nico di Angelo, right?" Lukas asked, his voice so similar to Nico's. His blue hoodie was frayed and torn, his collarbone sticking out. He eyed the kitchen once in awhile, Piper having taken Nico's job to cook them all a snack. The smells hit him like a ton of bricks, the fact that free food was so close he could almost grab it.

Nico nodded, his eyes not leaving Lukas' face for a second. He thought back to his childhood, thought back to all the beatings he got for wanting to meet this stranger. And now? It felt like he had stepped into a whole new world, a world that made him want to go back home to his own. "Lukas. Or Blue. Or Vincent."

"Blue," Lukas replied. "Just Blue."

"Blue." Nico rolled the word off his tongue, thought to all that the color meant to him. Now, everything had been rewritten. "Blue Evans, is it?"

Lukas nodded. "Evans isn't something I go by often anymore, if Percy told you everything I told him."

"Nothing changes." Nico agreed. He stared this boy down, stared down this boy that required a fake pleasantness from Nico. "So...has anyone ever told you anything...about mom?"

"Food's done!" Piper brought the food over before Lukas had time to react, Jason helping her carry half of it. "Everyone's orders are mostly how they asked for. And since it's almost morning and mass is in three hours, coffee is brewing. Blue, you're going to mass whether you want to or not. We have nowhere else to put you right now."

Nico crossed his arms. "Can't we leave him on the side of the road?"

"Oh, cheer up." Lukas grinned. "It'll be fun, I'm sure."

"Not with you there," Nico mumbled. He looked at Lukas, looked at his twin, looked at the long-lost Vincent di Angelo. His bright personality, his optimism and self-confidence, his smile and laughter. Nico knew that in an instant after seeing him, Will would take Lukas back for himself and leave Nico alone.

Again, all alone, with only heroin there to keep him company. Nico started to look forward to the high as they ate, daydreamed about the relief he would feel.

He never dared to think of the misery he'd feel after such high.

"Nico," Percy slid the cup of coffee in front of the daydreaming boy. "You okay?"

Nico nodded absentmindedly, looking down at that cup as if he was looking for the heroin there. He wanted it, wanted it so bad, was craving it like the first time he ever felt that high. He wanted it, wanted it, wanted it...

"Nico," Lukas' cheerful voice broke him out of his thoughts. "Mind showing me around tomorrow? Maybe we could go to that shooting range I saw a couple blocks down."

"No, thank you." Nico sipped the coffee, tasted bitterness instead of smelling heroin. "I'm letting you stay at my house but that's it. You're too annoying right now to be friends with."

"Ouch." Lukas moved a hand to his heart. "You wounded me, Nico. You really did."

"Let's talk about school." Percy broke in, sensing the tension between the two. "Let's just talk about school..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nico laid in bed, laid on that hard mattress and stared at that dark ceiling. He missed Will, missed the old school year, missed heroin. He missed the things that made him happy.  
A soft knock came at his door, making him jump slightly. It was hard to remember someone was living with him, even after the two weeks they spent at each other's throats. When they weren't fighting, he and Lukas spent the time in silence as far away as possible from each other.

"Nico?" Lukas called through the doorway, his voice soft. "Are you awake?"

Nico stayed silent, hoping that the other boy would go away.

"You usually stay up late." Lukas continued. "I know you're in there, listening to me. I wanted to talk."

Nico sat there for a minute more before letting out a sigh of depression, his muscles aching as he sat up in his bed. "Fine, fine. Come in. Turn the light on while you do."

Lukas swung the door open, the hallway light leaking into the now open room. His pajamas, hand-me-downs from Percy, were a dark blue. Bare feet rubbed against the wooden floor, small arms wrapped around his torso. He looked into the room and flipped the light on, looking small and frail to Nico for the first time.

"I...I..." Lukas looked down, stared at his tan feet. "I wanted to talk to you. We're twins, aren't we? We should talk."

Nico rolled his eyes but gestured him into the room. "Fine, fine. Whatever. Just get talking already. I'm tired."

Lukas sat next to Nico on the bed, sat next to the twin he always dreamt about meeting. "So...you've been pretty annoyed with me, haven't you?"

Nico snorted. "What gave that away?"

Lukas sighed, a sad noise Nico had never heard come from those lips. "So you hate me."

"I never said that." Nico scowled. "What would make you think that?"

"Your whole behavior." Lukas spread his hands. "Your face says it all. I can't even walk into the room without upsetting you. I always dreamed of meeting my brother, Nico, and this isn't how I expected it to go."

"First of all, I don't hate you." Nico rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You're my brother. I could never hate you. Second of all, I always dreamt about meeting you, also. I honestly didn't know what to expect. My mom gave you away because you were so tiny, my dad would have probably killed you. And then...we both ended up on the losing side when it comes to parents."

Lukas laughed. "You're right about that."

"I don't hate you," Nico repeated. "I'm just...honestly...scared that you're going to steal Will away from me. I...I love him, no matter how cheesy that sounds."

"I know you love Will." Lukas' smile turned sad. "We both do. And I know you're better for him. I'm not going to steal him away from you, Nico. I'm just asking to be friends with him. That's all."

Nico gave him a grateful smile. "If he wants it, then so be it."


	20. Chapter 19

Will got home from California the weekend before school started, the weekend before his senior year. He helped his mom unpack their things before rushing off to meet Nico at work, having missed that boy more than he'd like to admit. He loved Nico, he realized. He loved him.

And it felt pretty damn good.

The cafe was full of people, the highschoolers enjoying their last weekend off and the adults taking a break from work. When Will entered, he could see Nico swooping from table to table, his black apron falling off his skinny waist and his white shirt stained with what looked like coffee. Will watched in amusement before sitting in the corner, his eyes on Nico until Nico finally noticed him, having come to take his order.

"Will!" Nico leaned in to kiss his cheek before standing upright again. "I'm really busy..."

"I'll have a coffee and wait until your shift is done." Will smiled. "I'll watch."

Nico rolled his eyes, a soft smile tugging at his lips. "Aye aye, captain." He walked to the kitchen, getting detoured constantly from the constant number of demand coming from the customers. He waited on them first, not wanting to lose his job. If he did, how would he buy Friday coffees and how would he keep his stash of money, the stash waiting for the day he bought heroin again?

He eventually brought Will his coffee, kissed his cheek, and sped off again. He was always busy, always moving, always amazing in Will's mind. Will watched his boyfriend as if he was the world itself, watched him as if there was nothing else. He loved him, more than anything. A love that felt so warm, so light in your chest. A love that kept you up all night and a love that sent your mind spiraling away from anything else.

Nico's shift eventually ended, the only other waiter coming to take his place. Nico took his apron off before sliding into the seat across from Will, his eyes lit up and a smile on his pale face. "Damn, Will, you were gone for too long."

Will laughed. "I know, trust me. Never again. You can come with me next summer."

Nico smiled. "I'd like that." He stared into Will's eyes, stared at that baby blue. He was scared to tell him about Lukas, scared to tell something that needed to be told. "Will, I need to talk to you about something important."

Will's smile dropped. "Okay...is everything okay?"

Nico nodded. "Just promise not to freak out, okay?"

Will nodded, a slight hesitation in his movements. "Okay, I promise."

Nico grabbed Will's hand and played with the tan fingers, played with the bit fingernails, did anything to try and distract himself from the anxiety that bubbled in his chest. "A couple weeks ago...Percy's family found this boy wandering the city. He was homeless. They enrolled him at our school and he's living with me because he had nowhere else to go."

Will watched Nico closely. "Are you saying you fell for him? That you cheated?"

"What?" Nico could barely hold a laugh back. "Oh god, no. No, no. Never."

Will seemed to relax. "Then why did you tell me not to freak out?"

The laughter died in his chest as the words struggled to escape. "His...his name...is Lukas Evans...he...his father made him fake his death..."

Will's face blanked, his expression holding no emotion. He stared at Nico, stared at his boyfriend, stared as if his eyes held no life within them. After a couple minutes of tension based silence, Will finally spoke with a broken voice and a tear in his eye. "Why would you say something like that? That...that's not funny, Nico."

"I'm not joking." he gripped onto Will's hand, tighter than before. "I promise I'm not, Will. I can take you to him, now."

Will shook his head, shook his head against the thoughts he didn't want to believe. "Nico..."

"I know, I know." Nico moved a hand to Will's cheek. "I know. Do you want me to take you there?"

Will took a deep breath, a shaky breath while his chest rattled. "Yeah, yeah. But don't leave me, okay? I can't do this alone."

"I never would," Nico promised. "Come on, let's go."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The ride home was silent. Nico drove Will's car, the smell of the cafe still clinging to his skin. As the neighborhoods passed by them, Will stared at them as if they held all the answers, as if they could fix the breaking mind his head held.

But nothing was fixed.

When they finally got to Nico's house, Will had tears pouring from his eyes and his pale lips trembled. He looked over at Nico, searched for any support. He needed all that he could get.

"Come on, let's go." Nico got out of the car before helping Will. "He's inside, you two can talk. You can say all that you've ever wanted to say."

Will nodded mutely, a tear dripping onto the grass at their feet.

"Come on," Nico led him to the door, unlocked it and led him inside. The house was silent, save for the sound of somebody walking upstairs. After closing the door behind them, Nico went to the bottom of the stairs so his voice would be heard. "Blue, Will is here!"

He had never seen the other boy move so fast. In an instant, Lukas was down the stairs and in front of Will, those fake eyes staring into the blue that Nico loved. Staring...staring for so long.

Suddenly, Lukas leaned in for a kiss. Will didn't move away.


	21. Chapter 20

Once Nico pulled the two apart, Lukas went stumbling back with wide eyes and a guilty conscious. He began to sprout apologizes, but all Nico could do was focus his attention on Will. Will..."Why did you do that?"

"I'm sorry..." Will wiped at his mouth as if could wipe Lukas away. "I'm so so sorry. He kissed me and I...I don't know. I'm insane or something. My dead boyfriend is back and I love my alive one more and I feel horrible for the dead one but I love the alive one and-"

"Will, go brush your teeth," Nico instructed. "I can't kiss you until you do." He kissed Will's cheek. "Stop freaking out for a second and go do that. I'm going to talk to Lukas privately. We already have, but apparently, that wasn't enough."

"Nico, don't hurt him..." Will leaned his head on Nico's, taking in the smell of his boyfriend's shampoo. "Okay? No homicide."

Nico cracked a smile. "I'll see what I can do. Now go wash those disgusting lips."

Will nodded, keeping Nico close to him for a minute more before disappearing upstairs. Once he was gone, Nico turned to Lukas with fire in his eyes. "Don't. Do. That. Again."

Lukas held his hands up in surrender. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Nico. I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry."

"You said just friends."

"And I meant it." Lukas promised. "I just...seeing him after so long...I acted on my heart. I'm sorry."

"You better be," Nico mumbled. "Because I need to trust you two."

"You can, I promise." Lukas took a step closer to him. "I promise. We can work on getting me a boyfriend or something, huh?"

Nico gave him a half smile. "Yeah, sure. But stay away from mine."

"He said it himself. He loves you more." Lukas shrugged his shoulders. "I want him to be happy. And you make him happy. So we'll just be friends. And me and you will be brothers."

"Oh god," Nico mumbled. "That won't end well."

Lukas laughed as Will came back downstairs. "Only you, Nico."

Nico gave him another smile before looking to Will, his arms crossed. "You washed those lips?"

Will smiled. "I smell like mints have been in my mouth since I was born. That mouthwash of yours is powerful."

"I used to use it so I didn't smell like...like...you know." Nico waved his hand, dissolving the topic he never wanted to get into again. "Lukas and I talked. You two are going to be...only friends...right?"

Will kissed his forehead. "Course, Nico. I love you. Lukas and I...will love each other as friends. It'll take some getting used to. Like...he's alive...I'm still in the 'holy shit' phase."

"Then hug him or something." Nico gestured to Lukas. "I don't care if you hug or talk. Friends do that. But all the boyfriend stuff is for me only."

Will hugged Nico before moving to Lukas, buring himself in the awaiting boy's chest. They hugged it out for awhile before Will finally pulled away, his face covered in tears. "I thought you were dead because of me."

"If I could have changed what happened, I would." Lukas smiled sadly. "It was all my father...I...I wanted to stay with you and my mom, but my father was also in the equation."

"He's an ass." Will grumbled. "A real ass."

"Yeah, but can you imagine the awesome trip I took?" Lukas' eyes lit up, the eyes of someone that the world could never stop offering an adventure to. "I climbed mountains, I swam in the Great Lakes. And I snuck on boats and snuck on trains and I'm wanted in a couple states."

Will laughed softly as he wiped tears from his pink face. "Only you, Lukas."

Lukas ruffled Will's hair. "Best friends, now. You have to help me find a boyfriend."

Will smiled. "Challenge accepted."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

School started with cup holders of coffee and rock music blaring from the radio. Percy drove, Nico and Will were in the backseat doing last minute summer homework, and Lukas had shotgun. His blue hair had been redyed the night before, the roots not dark anymore. He hung his head out the window and let the wind blow his hair away, let his pale face belong to the air again.

There was something about that moment that Nico would never forget, something about Lukas that he'd never forget. His happiness, his struggles, everything life wore him down with all tied up in what Nico could only describe as a sky blue. Lukas was blue, but not the dark blue that he associated himself with.

They got there thirty minutes before classes started, knowing very well that they'd take forever at their new lockers. The new codes, the new rules. The school had gotten more...strict, you could say...as the threats kept on. They didn't want their kids to die, but the government seemed to think otherwise.

The schedules had been out, their classes were assigned. Everything seemed fine to Nico besides his fifth period, which would involve gym class with Lukas, Percy, Will, and Leo. It was a disaster waiting to happen.

When he finally got to the locker rooms to change, Lukas and Leo were in deep discussion about something Nico never wanted to find out. He stepped into a bathroom stall, changed into sweatpants, came out to find that everyone else had finished. He gave Lukas a look before gesturing to Leo, which was met with only a shrug and a 'we'll see' look.  
His gym teacher took the fact that they were twins as meaning that they liked each other, put them on the same team so they would like him. It instead caused a fight every two minutes. They were civilized, but they could never stop bickering. They were complete opposites, with only Will and genetics to unite them.

The baseball field was at the back of the school, a thin fence separating them from the dangerous neighborhoods around them. There was one bat and only two baseball mitts, but they made do. Percy and Leo were on the opposing team, their gym clothes already covered with the white dust.

"Leo, we're not professionals!" Percy called out as Leo swiped his foot over home plate, cleaning off the dust.

"I am!" Lukas called back, a laugh escaping his lips.

"Not even when pigs fly." Nico shook his head. "Not even a thousand years after pigs fly, at that. Not even when all the pigs die."

Lukas' laughed made Will look up from the bench where he waited to bat. Made him smile as bright as the sun. Nico didn't say anything, knowing not to. He knew who Will chose, and Will had chosen Nico. He knew Will would never be unfaithful, but it'd take a while before the love for Lukas died out. He'd give them that.

In the meantime, he'd use that guilt to make sure Will would never leave his side.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

The roof was the same as the year before, but the smell of heroin had drifted away. The fresh air filled their lungs and the sun beat down on them with the urgency to warm up its already sweating victims. They sat with cold drinks and fingerfoods, sat together again for the first time in months. But for the first time since they ever began to sit on that roof, Nico didn't use it to get high during the school day.

Will sat by him the whole time, just in case he went to go relapse. Will knew it was hard, he understood. And Nico could never be more thankful. Having support was one thing, but having the one close to your side, actually caring, was what truly mattered.

Lukas and Leo never stopped talking, never stopped coming up with another prank they could pull on somebody. They sat with their lunches against the far wall, a paper between them that they drew a plan out on. Will watched them every now and again, but he mostly stayed focused on Nico and their conversation. It was good, light. Everything was good.  
Everything was so good.


End file.
